Review note: Jim Desmond for Congress and Marni von Wilpert for Congress may have more bias because they are advocacy voter guides compared to other formal government and nonprofit journalism sources.
- 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
- sandiego.gov (opens in a new tab)San Diego City Council, District 5 — official page (Marni von Wilpert's committee roles)
- marnivonwilpert.com (opens in a new tab)Marni von Wilpert for Congress — campaign site (biography and stated priorities)
- voiceofsandiego.org (opens in a new tab)Voice of San Diego — City Council attendance piece (Marni von Wilpert's missed budget meetings and her office's response)
- desmondforcongress.com (opens in a new tab)Jim Desmond for Congress — campaign site (biography and stated priorities)
- kpbs.org (opens in a new tab)KPBS — 'What's Desmond's deal on the Tijuana River?' (his supervisor vote and its funding contradiction)
- kpbs.org (opens in a new tab)KPBS — CA-48 race coverage (used only for the Issa retirement/endorsement context, not the poll numbers)
- unitedstates.github.io (opens in a new tab)congress-legislators — current members of Congress (unitedstates project)
- fec.gov (opens in a new tab)FEC — 2026 House & Senate current-campaign financial summaries (bulk data)
Last updated September 24, 2026.
Federal
United States Representative, District 48
This person holds your district's seat in the U.S. House of Representatives (2-year term).
This is an open seat. Republican Jim Desmond led the June 2 primary with 38.9% of the vote. Democrat Marni von Wilpert took 20.8% to advance. The district covers inland north San Diego County.
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. Because this seat is open, whoever wins starts at the bottom of the seniority ladder.
Neither candidate has held state or federal legislative office and the money is close to level, so neither resources nor record separates them — party and local background do. Both drew the large majority of their funding from named individuals rather than committees, which is unusual for a competitive open seat at this scale.
Jim Desmond
Jim Desmond is a Navy veteran who spent 33 years as a Delta Air Lines pilot. He later served as Mayor of San Marcos and now serves as a San Diego County Supervisor.
Desmond says it is time for common sense to return to government. As a supervisor, he backed spending 1.8 million dollars in county reserves to study cleaning up the Tijuana River, but he opposes the sales tax measure on the ballot that would pay for the actual project.
He promises to make California more affordable and to overhaul the immigration system. He also promises a treatment focused plan to end homelessness.
Marni von Wilpert
Marni von Wilpert grew up in a military family in North San Diego County. She served in the Peace Corps in Botswana, then worked as a civil prosecutor for the San Diego City Attorney's Office. She later worked as counsel on a House committee on workers rights before joining the San Diego City Council, where she chairs the Public Safety Committee.
She says the America she believes in does not let billionaires buy Congress or let prices crush working families. She has missed some city budget meetings while running for Congress. Her office says she deals with occasional scheduling conflicts, like many elected officials.
She promises to lower the cost of food, fuel, and housing. She also promises to protect Social Security, defend reproductive rights, and stop a planned power line project in the district.
Record in office
This is an open seat: no candidate on the November ballot currently serves in the California Legislature or U.S. Congress, so there is no legislative record to compare here. These records cover only those offices.
Financial info
- Individuals
- PACs & committees
- Party
- Self-funding
Marni von Wilpert
$2,174,872 raised
- Individuals$1,684,54679%
- PACs & committees$441,30021%
- Party$2,035<1%
- Self-funding$1,975<1%
Jim Desmond
$2,258,836 raised
- Individuals$2,024,35893%
- PACs & committees$145,0997%
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 2026-09-21.