California assemblyman Evan Low joins race to replace retiring Rep. Eshoo

California Democratic Assemblymember Evan Low on Tuesday launched an expected bid for Congress, jumping into the race to replace longtime Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-Calif.), who is not seeking reelection in 2024.

Low, 40, would be the first openly LGBTQ congressman to represent the Bay Area and the fourth openly LGBTQ person elected to Congress from California. His endorsements include several of the state’s sitting members of Congress, including Democratic Reps. Ro Khanna, Judy Chu and Mark Takano.

Low in an interview with Politico ahead of Tuesday’s announcement described himself as a “fighter” and said he is prepared to defend the rights of LGBTQ people in Congress. He denounced House Speaker Mike Johnson’s (R-La.) conservative record on LGBTQ rights, which has put some civil rights advocates on high alert.

“The best way to combat that is to send more openly LGBT individuals to Congress,” Low said.

First elected to California’s State Assembly in 2014, Low has used his time in the Legislature to promote the state’s technology sector and advocate against anti-LGBTQ legislation and rhetoric and violence against Asian Americans.

Low currently chairs the body’s Asian American and Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus and serves as a co-chair of the Legislative Technology and Innovation Caucus. He is the former chair of the state Assembly’s LGBTQ Caucus.

The five-term lawmaker got his start in politics in 2006, when he became the first Asian American and openly gay person elected to the city council of Campbell, Calif. In 2009, Low was elected mayor of Campbell, making him the youngest Asian American mayor in the country at the time.

Low on Tuesday told The Mercury News he plans to focus on “bread and butter key core issues” if he is elected to Congress. That includes public safety and Silicon Valley retaining its “competitiveness with global innovation,” he said.

Low joins an increasingly crowded field of Democratic hopefuls in the race for California’s 16th Congressional District, a solidly blue district that includes much of Silicon Valley.

Former California state Sen. Joe Simitian (D) formally announced his bid to replace Eshoo in November, touting endorsements from more than 130 local elected officials and more than $600,000 in campaign contributions.

Democrat Rishi Kumar, who lost to Eshoo during last year’s midterm elections, is also in the running. Former San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo launched a campaign website and filed paperwork to run, but has not formally announced his candidacy.