Jeff Denham

Jeffrey John "Jeff" Denham /ˈdɛnəm/ (born July 29, 1967) is an American politician, United States Air Force veteran, and businessman. A member of the Republican Party, he is the U.S. Representative for California's 10th congressional district. Denham first won election to the U.S. House in 2010, representing California's 19th congressional district for one term before redistricting led him to run in the 10th district in 2012.
From 2002 to 2010, Denham served in the California State Senate, representing the 12th District, which includes Madera, Merced, Monterey, San Benito, and Stanislaus counties.
Prior to seeking political office, Denham served on active and reserve status in the United States Air Force for 16 years, and served in both Operation Desert Storm in Iraq and Operation Restore Hope in Somalia. He has worked as a farmer and started a plastics container company to ship produce.

In 1984, at age 17, Denham enlisted in the United States Air Force. He served on active and reserve status for 16 years, during which he received the Meritorious Service Medal for his service during Operation Desert Storm (Iraq) and Operation Restore Hope (Somalia). In 2006 he was honored by the California National Guard with its highest military award, the "Order of California" service award, for distinguished service.

Denham received an associate's degree from Victor Valley College in 1989 and a B.A. in political science from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, in 1992. After graduating, Denham began working in the agriculture industry.

In 2000, Denham ran for the California State Assembly against City Councilman Simon Salinas, a Democrat. A total of $2.5 million was spent in the race. Salinas defeated Denham with 52% of the vote.

Elections

2002

Denham ran for the State Senate in 2002 against former Democratic State Assemblyman Rusty Areias. The race featured a number of negative political advertisements and was one of the most expensive legislative races in state history, with over $6.3 million spent. Denham's campaign highlighted Areias's financial difficulties, including unpaid taxes.

The election was on November 5, 2002, but the vote count was close; the lead in the race went back and forth for several days. Denham won by 1,843 votes, 48% to 47%.

2006

In November 2006, Denham won re-election to a second term with 58% of the vote.

2008 recall attempt

In 2008, a recall effort was instigated against Denham by Democrat Don Perata after Denham declined to cast a deadlock-breaking vote on the state budget. Supporters of the recall turned in more than 60,000 signatures. In the recall election on June 3, 2008, Denham easily survived the recall, with 77% of voters casting ballots to retain him.

2009 Lieutenant Governor and State Assembly campaigns

Denham announced in December 2008 that he would be a candidate for Lieutenant Governor of California in the 2010 election. He ended his campaign soon after Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, in November 2009, appointed Republican State Senator Abel Maldonado to fill the vacancy left by the resignation of Lieutenant Governor John Garamendi, a Democrat, who was elected to Congress.

Denham then campaigned briefly for the State Assembly seat being vacated by Tom Berryhill of Modesto, but in late December 2009 he dropped out of that race to run for Congress.

Tenure

During his time in the state legislature, Denham focused his efforts on education, agriculture and job creation. He called for a reduction in government waste in Sacramento, better use of state surplus assets, and a crackdown on sexual predators.

Denham's awards include Legislator of the Year by the California State Sheriffs' Association (2004), Outstanding Legislator by the California State Sheriff's Association (2005), Legislator of the Year by the California Small Business Association (2005), Most Progressive Law Enforcement Leader of the Year by A Woman's Place of Merced (2005), and California Teachers Association Gold Award (2005).

Committee assignments

Denham's committee assignments in the California State Senate included:

• Business, Professions and Economic Development
• Education
• Agriculture
• Veterans Affairs
• Governmental Organization

• "Negative ads apparently paid off, as shown by Denham-Areias tilt". Archived from the original on November 6, 2005. Retrieved July 21, 2007. 
• Caldwell, Michelle (October 17, 2002). "Rusty Areias takes another shot at the State Senate". Monterrey County Now. Retrieved 2 March 2016. 
• Miller, Jim (November 14, 2002). "Denham says victory in 12th is guaranteed". Modesto Bee. Archived from the original on April 27, 2003. Retrieved March 2, 2016. 
• "CA State Senate 12". Our Campaigns. Retrieved March 2, 2016. 
• "CA State Senate 12". Our Campaigns. Retrieved March 2, 2016. 
• Richman, Josh (June 3, 2008). "The Jeff Denham recall is a flop". Political Blotter. Bay Area News Group. Retrieved 2 March 2016. 
• "Jeff Denham announces run for lieutenant governor". The Sacramento Bee. December 11, 2008. Retrieved February 5, 2014. 
• "Sen. John McCain endorses Jeff Denham for lt. governor". The Californian. May 12, 2009. Archived from the original on January 19, 2016. Retrieved February 5, 2014. 
• Goldmacher, Shane (November 24, 2009). "Schwarzenegger taps Abel Maldonado for lieutenant governor". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 5, 2014. 
• "Breaking down the Maldonado confirmation vote". Political Blotter. April 26, 2010. Retrieved February 5, 2014. 
• "Denham quits Lt. Gov. race, will vie for Berryhill's assembly seat". The Modesto Bee. December 10, 2009. Archived from the original on February 21, 2014. Retrieved February 5, 2014. 
• "Senator Jeff Denham Drops out of Lt. Gov. Race". ABC News. December 10, 2009. Retrieved February 5, 2014. 
• "Jeff Denham Path to Power". WhoRunsGov. The Washington Post. August 21, 2012. 
• "Jeff Denham Biography" (PDF). Victory Valley College. Retrieved 26 May 2014. 
• "Jeff Denham". Ballotpedia. Retrieved 2 March 2016. 

Elections

2010

In December 2009, seven-term U.S. Congressman George Radanovich announced he would retire due to health reasons. He endorsed Denham as his successor for the California's 19th congressional district.

In the Republican primary, Denham defeated Fresno mayor Jim Patterson, former U.S. Congressman Richard Pombo, and Fresno City Councilman Larry Westerlund 36%–31%–21%–12%.

In the 2010 general election, Denham defeated Democrat Loraine Goodwin with 65% of the vote.

2012

After redistricting, Denham decided to run in the newly redrawn California's 10th congressional district. Former NASA astronaut José Hernández ran against him as the Democratic candidate. The 10th is a swing district with a 25% Hispanic voting age population. Denham won with 53% of the vote to Hernández's 47%.

2014

In 2014, Denham ran unopposed in the Republican primary. Denham was expected to receive media endorsements over his Democratic opponent, Michael Eggman, a commercial beekeeper and almond grower, although the seat was regarded by some as "vulnerable" earlier in the year.

The Rothenberg Political Report ultimately listed the race as "Republican Favored". Denham defeated Eggman with 56% of the vote.

2016

Denham ran for re-election in 2016. He finished first in the top-two primary on June 7, 2016, and again faced Eggman, who placed second, in the general election on November 8, 2016. Denham won re-election with 51.7% of the vote.More than $11 million was spent on the race, mostly from outside groups.

Tenure

In the 114th Congress, Denham voted with his party 92.6% of the time.

In July 2012, he criticized an event put on by the General Services Administration, which cost $268,732. He said that he believed that the controversy went even further than the GSA.

In October 2013, Denham co-sponsored the comprehensive immigration reform bill introduced by House Democrats. In announcing his support for the bill, he said: "We can't afford any more delays. I support an earned path to citizenship to allow those who want to become citizens to demonstrate a commitment to our country, learn English, pay fines and back taxes and pass background checks."

Denham has argued that the national deficit is the biggest issue for the United States, and called it a threat to the nation's freedom. In 2012 he stressed his desire to use the economic downturn to reassess and find different ways to drive the United States forward.

In August 2014, Denham broke ranks with the Republican Party and voted against a bill that would have dismantled the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals.

Committee assignments

• Transportation and Infrastructure Committee
  • Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings and Emergency Management
  • Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials, Chairman
  • Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment
• Veterans' Affairs Committee
  • Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity
  • Subcommittee on Health
• Agriculture Committee
  • Subcommittee on Horticulture, Research, Biotechnology, and Foreign Agriculture
  • Subcommittee on Livestock, Rural Development, and Credit

• Blake, Aaron (December 29, 2009). "Radanovich to retire". The Hill. Retrieved May 26, 2014. 
• "CA District 19 - R Primary". Our Campaigns. Retrieved March 2, 2016. 
• "CA - District 19". Our Campaigns. Retrieved March 2, 2016. 
• "CA - District 10 - Open Primary". Our Campaigns. Retrieved 2 March 2016. 
• Trygstad, Kyle (October 13, 2011). "Astronaut Challenging Freshman Jeff Denham". Roll Call. Retrieved March 2, 2016. 
• Caine, Eric (June 6, 2014). "Election Post-Mortem". The Valley Citizen. Retrieved March 2, 2016. 
• Barragan Ruiz, Olivia (June 10, 2014). "Eggman lands a spot on ballot Latino Democrat will face Jeff Denham in November". Fresno Bee. Archived from the original on June 14, 2014. Retrieved March 2, 2016. 
• "House Ratings". Rothenberg Political Report. 17 October 2014. Retrieved October 20, 2014. 
• "Statement of the Vote November 4, 2014" (PDF). California Secretary of State. Retrieved March 2, 2016. 
• Holland, John (May 21, 2016). "Challengers for Denham's House seat range across spectrum". Modesto Bee. Retrieved May 24, 2016. 
• "California Primary Results". New York Times. Retrieved June 8, 2016. 
• Holland, John (November 8, 2016). "Denham defeats Eggman for Modesto-area House seat". Modesto Bee. Retrieved November 11, 2016. 
• Cockerham, Sean. "Darrell Issa, Jeff Denham and Steve Knight win reelection | The Wichita Eagle". Kansas.com. Retrieved 2016-11-12. 
• "Voting With Party". Open Congress. Sunlight Foundation. Retrieved 2 March 2016. 
• Parni, Tarini (19 July 2012). "Lawmakers: GSA spent $270K on event". Politico. Retrieved 17 August 2012. 
• Richard Simon (October 27, 2013). "Immigration: California Republican Rep. Denham backs overhaul bill". LA Times. Retrieved November 20, 2013. 
• "Jeff Denham The Issues". WhoRunsGov. The Washington Post. Retrieved August 17, 2012. 
• Foley, Elise (August 1, 2014). "House Votes To Strip Deportation Relief From Dreamers". Huffington Post. Retrieved 4 September 2014. 

Denham owns and operates Denham Plastics, a supplier of reusable containers in the agriculture industry. He and his family also farm almonds at their ranch in Merced County.

Denham and his wife Sonia have two children. She is Hispanic, and Denham has said that he learned Spanish to communicate with her family, including to help his Mexican father-in-law through the process of gaining U.S. citizenship.