Melissa Toomim
Republican candidate for U.S. House in California
CA-36 primary: first place
$1.3K
JUN 6, 2026Primary Election
Party selects its nominee.
Live Odds — CA-36 primary: first place
Current prediction-market probability for the candidate, updated as market prices change.
0%chance to win
$1.3KJUN 6, 2026Candidate Overview
Key details about the candidate’s background, party, office sought and current campaign.
Current roleInvestigative journalist
PartyRepublican
Political ideologyConservative Republican
GenderFemale
LocationCalifornia
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BackgroundInvestigative journalist
Notable personal detailsLeah Melissa Toomim is a Republican candidate for the U.S. House in California's 36th Congressional District. She has run for Congress in prior cycles and has been listed on the California Secretary of State’s 2024 general election candidate roster for CA-36 with the ballot designation “Investigative Journalist.” She has an authorized principal campaign committee, Toomim for Congress, registered with the Federal Election Commission.
SourcesShowHide
Political Positions
Economy & Taxes
Supports lowering tax burdens and using tax incentives to bring industry and manufacturing back to the U.S., favors replacing the income tax with a national sales tax, and criticizes high taxation and government spending inefficiencies. Advocates audits of programs before additional appropriations and reducing regulatory barriers to encourage reshoring and investment.
Healthcare
The candidate supports keeping Medicare and Medicaid but opposes creating new taxpayer-funded universal healthcare programs and penalties to enforce universal insurance. The candidate opposes government, school, or employer vaccine mandates under any circumstance.
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Immigration & Border
The candidate supports securing the southern border while also backing managed immigration reforms and a pathway to citizenship for long-term undocumented residents. She emphasizes humane, lawful immigration systems with due process protections and oversight of enforcement agencies.
Climate & Energy
The candidate rejects mainstream climate science, stating opposition to the idea that man-made climate change is a global threat and criticizing climate funding. She promotes nuclear power as the preferred energy source and characterizes climate policies as part of an agenda she opposes. These positions indicate skepticism of aggressive emissions regulation and support for expanded fossil-free nuclear energy rather than Green New Deal–style policies.
Latest News
Melissa Toomim is being mentioned in coverage about House Democrats weighing more aggressive redistricting plans ahead of the 2028 elections. The discussion comes after court rulings blocked or weakened maps Democrats had hoped would help them gain seats. The reports say party leaders are looking at several states as they consider their next move.
Campaign Fundraising
Latest report: Cycle 2026Campaign finance totals from the latest available reporting period.
2022
2024
2026
LatestCycle 2022
Cycle 2024
Cycle 2026
Source: FEC
New updates coming soon
We're monitoring and will update when new data impacts the race.
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