Federal · Statewide General Election
United States Representative, District 17
Draft candidate list — early preview until the state’s official list publishes on August 27, 2026.
This is one contest. Enter your address to see every race on your November ballot, and keep track of your picks.
On the ballot
- Ro Khanna — Democratic
- Ritesh Tandon — Republican
This person holds your district's seat in the U.S. House of Representatives (2-year term).
Representative Ro Khanna took 62.3% of the June 2 vote and Republican Ritesh Tandon took 14.8% to claim the second slot. Khanna has raised $13,761,491 — the largest campaign fund of any candidate on this ballot, state or federal. The district covers Fremont, Santa Clara and part of Silicon Valley.
The winner holds one of 435 seats in the U.S. House for a two-year term. A member introduces bills, sits on committees that shape federal legislation, votes on the federal budget and on war powers, and handles casework between constituents and federal agencies. Seniority governs committee standing, so a longer-serving member carries influence a newcomer cannot.
One number here is worth pausing on. The incumbent raised $13.76 million and took $1,000 of it from PACs and committees — effectively none. Of every candidate on this ballot he has both the largest campaign and the smallest institutional share of it, at roughly seven thousandths of one percent. Whatever you make of the scale, the composition is unusual and verifiable.
Ro Khanna
Democrat, the sitting Representative for this district since 2017. He has sponsored 48 bills in the 119th Congress, and 8 of his career bills have become law. He raised $13,761,491, of which $12,735,790 came from individuals and $1,000 from PACs and committees.
Strengths
Eight career bills enacted is a strong count for the House, and his funding is almost entirely individual.
Trade-offs
A $13.8 million campaign in a district he won by 47 points in June is a very large sum relative to the contest in front of him.
Keep in mind
Money raised well beyond what a race requires is generally available for other purposes, including national political activity; the filings show what came in, not where it goes next.
Ritesh Tandon
Republican, who advanced with 14.8% of the June vote. He raised $37,653, nearly all from individuals. He has not served in the California Legislature or U.S. Congress.
Strengths
A campaign funded entirely by individuals, in a district where the alternative would have been no contest at all.
Trade-offs
That total is roughly three-tenths of one percent of the incumbent's, and he has no record in office to be judged on.
Keep in mind
Coverage surfaced little detail about his platform. That gap is what was available to us on 2026-08-10, not a comment on his candidacy.
Record in office
Ro Khanna (Democratic) has served in the U.S. House since 2017 and has sponsored 49 bills in the 119th Congress; 8 of their career bills have become law. Ritesh Tandon has not served in the California Legislature or U.S. Congress; these records cover only those offices. Per Congress.gov and the public-domain congress-legislators roster, retrieved 2026-08-10.
Record details
Khanna — Committees: Armed Services; Oversight and Government Reform; House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party Khanna — HR 4405 (2025): Epstein Files Transparency Act Khanna — HR 5887 (2025): Government Service Delivery Improvement Act Khanna — HR 7535 (2022): Quantum Computing Cybersecurity Preparedness Act Committee assignments and the most recently signed-into-law bills each record-holder lead-authored, from the official legislative record.
Financial info
- Individuals
- PACs & committees
- Self-funding
Ro Khanna
$13,761,491 raised
- Individuals$12,735,790100%
- PACs & committees$1,000<1%
Ritesh Tandon
$37,653 raised
- Individuals$37,628100%
- Self-funding$25<1%
1Total raised is all receipts for the 2026 cycle; the breakdown lists direct contributions, so the pieces can sum below the total. Figures are FEC filings through June 30, 2026, per the FEC bulk campaign-finance summaries, retrieved 2026-08-22.
June 2 primary — how they advanced
Source review: Very strong (95/100) · 5 cited sources
Official records anchor this contest, with multiple sources checked.
- sos.ca.gov (opens in a new tab)CA Secretary of State — Statement of Vote, June 2, 2026 primary (certified 2026-07-10)
- ballotpedia.org (opens in a new tab)Ballotpedia — June 2026 California primary
- unitedstates.github.io (opens in a new tab)congress-legislators — current members of Congress (unitedstates project)
- api.congress.gov (opens in a new tab)Congress.gov — member sponsored legislation (Library of Congress)
- fec.gov (opens in a new tab)FEC — 2026 House & Senate current-campaign financial summaries (bulk data)
Last updated August 11, 2026.