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Democrat

Esther Kim Varet

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Democrat

Esther Kim Varet

Website

CA-40 primary: first place

$32.7K

JUN 6, 2026

Primary Election

Party selects its nominee.

Overview

Current roleArt dealer

PartyDemocratic

Political ideologyMainstream Democrat

GenderFemale

LocationCalifornia

BackgroundArt dealer

EducationYale University (BA)

Notable personal detailsEsther Jin Kim Varet is an American art dealer and gallerist who founded and directs the contemporary art gallery Various Small Fires (VSF), established in Los Angeles in 2012 and later expanded to additional locations. She is a Democratic candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives in California's 40th Congressional District (2026 cycle). She attended Yale University and completed graduate study at Columbia University.

SourcesShow

fec.gov estherkimvaret.com en.wikipedia.org apollo-magazine.com legalclarity.org democraticunderground.com legis1.com estherjy.com rossier.usc.edu koreadaily.com estherjykim.com californiadsa.org themidtermproject.org timeout.com elections.cdn.sos.ca.gov docquery.fec.gov arxiv.org cadem.org boeingpac.com foxnews.com nrcc.org theliberaloc.com theorg.com estherkimmd.com ucsfhealth.org cchf.org entsp.com patch.com instagram.com localcandidates.org nypost.com latimes.com ocregister.com nytimes.com pressenterprise.com politico.com timesofsandiego.com bluevoterguide.org finance.yahoo.com grokipedia.com facebook.com youngkim.house.gov

Positions

LiberalConservative

Economy & Taxes

The candidate pledges to "make taxes fair," lower costs for middle-class families, protect seniors, and rejects corporate PAC contributions; no detailed tax-rate proposals or explicit advocacy for higher taxes on wealthy individuals or major tax-cut plans were found on official or media pages reviewed.

Healthcare

The campaign states she will work to lower costs and ensure quality, affordable healthcare is within reach and pledges to protect access to affordable health care and reproductive health services. The website and endorsements emphasize lowering costs and defending access but do not specify support for Medicare for All, a public option, or detailed healthcare policy proposals.

Immigration & Border

The candidate has criticized Trump administration immigration policies and has highlighted immigrant family experiences as central to her story and campaign. Her public posts have drawn attention to deportation and ICE actions, signaling support for more humane treatment of immigrants while not laying out a detailed border-enforcement blueprint on her campaign site.

Abortion & Reproductive Rights

The candidate supports safe access to abortion, contraception, and IVF for women in every state and states that these decisions should be between a woman and her doctor. The campaign opposes government interference in reproductive healthcare and says she will vote to protect women’s right to choose and provide access to healthcare.

Climate & Energy

Supports science-based actions to address pollution and climate change and pledges to protect clean air and water through responsible solutions and competitiveness-preserving policy. Emphasizes environmental protection as part of her campaign priorities but does not endorse Green New Deal–level language on the campaign site.

Public Safety & Guns

Supports responsible gun safety measures and is aligned with gun-violence-prevention groups; emphasizes backing common-sense gun safety while casting herself as respectful of lawful gun ownership. Campaign materials and related coverage characterize her as a supporter of expanded gun-safety policies.

News

AINews Summary

Last updatedJul 15, 2026

Esther Kim Varet is in the news because she is running in California's 40th Congressional District and finished third in the June primary with 15.5% of the vote as counting continued. The latest reports say Republicans Ken Calvert and Young Kim are projected to advance to the general election, leaving Democrats without a candidate in the top two. The race has also drawn attention because Democrats are criticizing the party's endorsement process and how resources were allocated in the district.

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Articles

HHuffPost2 months ago