Fong, 45, defeated local sheriff Mike Boudreaux in a runoff on May 22. His swearing-in brings the House to 218 Republicans and 213 Democrats, leaving only two Republicans who have deviated from party-line legislation.
Fong will now serve in Congress for the next seven months and have the advantage in the November elections.
The Bakersfield Assemblyman is a former top aide to McCarthy who retired in December after being ousted from the speakership, a role he has worked on throughout his career and held for nine months.
McCarthy was present on the floor during Fong’s swearing-in and was cheered by most Republicans, except his opponents in the Freedom Caucus when Fong thanked him.
Speaker Mike Johnson on Tuesday vowed to replace Rep. Vince Fong with Kevin McCarthy to shore up Republicans’ razor-thin majority in the House of Representatives
‘I would like to thank my wife Amanda for her love and support. I would like to thank my parents, my mother-in-law, my sister and our entire family for always being by my side, and a special thank you to my niece Evie, who is celebrating her ninth birthday with us today. I would also like to especially thank my mentor and friend, speaker Kevin McCarthy.”
Fong, 44, served as McCarthy’s district director for more than a decade.
McCarthy had taken the seat in 2007 after the retirement of his former boss, Rep. Bill Thomas, then chairman of the powerful House Ways and Means Committee. Fong worked with McCarthy for Thomas for a while.
The full force of McCarthy’s campaign dollars, fundraisers, consultants and affiliated PACs made the race against Boudreaux less than exciting.
Fong also won the support of former President Donald Trump, with help from McCarthy, in a district where 47 percent of registered voters are Republicans and 27 percent are Democrats.
Fong will compete again against Boudreaux for the full semester in November’s race.
Fong, 45, defeated local sheriff Mike Boudreaux in a runoff on May 22. His swearing-in brings the House to 218 Republicans and 213 Democrats, leaving only two Republicans who have deviated from party-line legislation.
Fong pictured with his wife Amanda
Fong laid out his priorities in his first speech to the House of Representatives:
“We must address the border crisis, stop the rising costs of everyday necessities that are putting pressure on family budgets, and do our best to keep our community safe. We need to strengthen our crumbling infrastructure, find long-term solutions for water and energy resources, especially in the West, and create more career and educational opportunities. We must support our military installations.”
He recognized the divisions of this Congress while calling for cooperation.
‘I certainly expect a passionate conversation that is expected of us. There is certainly no shortage of challenges facing our country, my state of California and my district, but now is also the time when we can make the most positive impact together.”