Republican Primary Candidate Crosses Party Lines to Endorse Democrat Eric Jones

Riehle is leading a project to mobilize disenfranchised voters in CA-04.

NAPA, CA – Ray Riehle, the top Republican vote-getter in the CA-04 primary, is crossing party lines to endorse Democrat Eric Jones for Congress and launching a new project to bring disenfranchised voters with him. 

Riehle is spearheading Californians Against the Democratic Establishment (CADE), which will conduct direct outreach to Republican and independent voters across the district ahead of November. Proposition 50’s redistricting left no Republican on the November ballot, forcing GOP and right-leaning independent voters to choose between sitting out the race or backing a Democrat.

“Now we face a clear choice: sit out the race because both candidates are Democrats, or vote for the Democrat who most shares our values and will stand up to the corrupt Democratic establishment in Sacramento and Washington,” Riehle said. “I choose to support Eric Jones. I choose to fight the establishment machine that is hurting our state.”

Riehle said he came to Jones with a clear set of expectations. “I asked Eric to prioritize fiscal discipline and investment in local infrastructure,” Riehle said. “He listened, engaged, and agreed.” The two have since signed a joint pledge to oppose gerrymandering and commit to a standard of political decency that puts constituents before politics.

Jones has committed to term limits, a ban on congressional stock trading, and public debates throughout the campaign. His opponent, 14-term incumbent Mike Thompson, has refused to accept Jones’ challenge to debate and has avoided open public dialogue for decades. 

“I made commitments to Ray that I intend to keep, because they are the same commitments I would make to any voter in this district," Jones said. "Putting this district ahead of special interests. Public debates. No lobbyist money. These aren’t Democratic or Republican values. They are the values of CA-04.”

Jones is a self-made businessman and nonprofit executive who grew up in an enlisted military family and is raising his own family in this district. 

Video of Ray Riehle's endorsement is available at caagainstdemestablishment.us.

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