What is your favorite Southern California congressional district?

[Starry Eyed Jagaloon]

Inspired by several other threads, I decided to create a poll for Atlas’s favorite California congressional state. Given my state has 53 (HA!--my state is more important than yours), I decided to start with Southern California’s “mere” 31. Below is a description of each:

CA-8 (PVI: R+9; Paul Cook, R-Yucca Valley): Latitudinally Northern, but topographically Southern, this district encompasses vast swathes of the high desert and the picturesque Eastern Sierras. Most of its population is concentrated in the exurban Victor Valley and Barstow, with a second concentration in the military-town Morongo Valley.

CA-24 (PVI: D+7; Salud Carbajal, D-Santa Barbara): This district stretches from the southern ends of the Big Sur coastline, through the college town of San Luis Obispo, the exurb of Santa Maria, and wine country to the affluent coastline of beautiful Santa Barbara, Montecito, and Carpinteria.

CA-25: (PVI: EVEN; Steve Knight, R-Palmdale): This district includes some mountains, the far-flung suburbs of Simi Valley and Santa Clarita, and the even further flung high-desert exurbs of the Antelope Valley. Home to a volcanologist, a lot of commuters, and even more stucco houses.

CA-26: (PVI: D+7; Julia Brownley, D-Oak Park): This Ventura County district includes hippie artists in Ojai; newly charred hills; beach-town Ventura; sprawling Oxnard; strawberry fields; and suburban Camarillo, Moorpark, and Thousand Oaks.

CA-27: (PVI: D+16; Judy Chu, D-Monterey Park): This oddly shaped district includes a variety of San Gabriel Valley communities indirectly connected to each other. In the west lie the heavily-Asian historic suburbs of Monterey Park and Rosemead; north of them lies beautiful Pasadena (Big Bang Theory); and to the east lies affluent San Marino, suburban Glendora, college-town Claremont, and exurban Rancho Cucamonga.

CA-28: (PVI: D+23; Adam Schiff, D-Burbank): This district starts from the San Gabriel Mountains and runs south through streetcar-suburb Burbank and Glendale, hipster Northeast Los Angeles, and across Griffith Park to urban Hollywood, trendy West Hollywood, and the Hollywood Hills.

CA-29: (PVI: D+29; Tony Cardenas, D-Los Angeles): This district includes predominantly working-class Latino neighborhoods in the San Fernando Valley, including North Hills, Pacoima, San Fernando, and Sylmar. Its southern extremity includes newly-hip North Hollywood.

CA-30: (PVI: D+18, Brad Sherman, D-Los Angeles): This disparate district includes, in its Northern chunk, the further-flung San Fernando Valley neighborhoods of Northridge, and Chatsworth (E.T., tract homes, and porn studios); in its western chunk, the suburb of Calabasas (Kim Kardashian); and in its southern chunk, Ventura Boulevard (rich, fairly urban).

CA-31: (PVI: D+8; Pete Aguilar, D-Fontana): This district, infamous for its top-two primary fiasco, includes working class exurbs in the Inland Empire such as Rialto, Fontana, Redlands, and Rancho Cucamonga, as well as the city of San Bernardino.

CA-32: (PVI: D+17; Grace Napolitano, D-Norwalk): This San Gabriel Valley district, whose representative lives several miles to the southwest, includes large swathes of suburbs such as El Monte, West Covina, Azusa, and Industry.

CA-33: (PVI: D+16; Ted Lieu, D-Torrance): This ritzy district, with its #Resistance representative, includes, from northwest to southeast, Malibu, Santa Monica, Venice Beach, Marina Del Rey, and LAX Airport, South Bay beach towns, Torrance, and Palos Verdes. Just inland are the Los Angeles neighborhoods of Brentwood (30-somethings in walk-ups), Westwood (UCLA, formerly me), Beverly Hills (self-explanatory), and Fairfax (nice urban neighborhood.)

CA-34: (PVI: D+35; Jimmy Gomez, D-Los Angeles): This compact, flawless-beautiful district where Mayor Garcetti and I make our homes includes an orbit of dynamic, interesting, diverse, dense, cosmopolitan neighborhoods (Koreatown, Hancock Park, Filipinotown, Chinatown, Eagle Rock, Boyle Heights, MacArthur Park, City West, Pico-Union) surrounding the center of the universe (okay, not really) in Downtown Los Angeles.

CA-35: (PVI: D+19; Norma Torres, D-Pomona): This Inland Empire district includes working class suburbs in Pomona, Ontario, and Fontana, and the rapidly growing Chino Valley to the south of them, were cattle farms are being replaced by stucco cul-de-sacs, miles at a time.

CA-36: (PVI: D+2; Raul Ruiz, D-Palm Desert): This vast Riverside-county district stretches from just beyond the Inland Empire to the Arizona border, including the low desert (Joshua Tree National Park), the popular resort community of Palm Springs, golf-course laden suburbs, Coachella, and exurban Indio (whose surrounding fields convert Colorado River Water to watermelons in February.) It also includes the northern reaches of the definitively weird Salton Sea.

CA-37: (PVI: D+37; Karen Bass, D-Los Angeles): This very diverse district includes, in its southeastern portion, the University of Southern California, part of South Central, and the neighborhoods of Leimert Park and Baldwin Hills. The northwestern chunk includes the Century City business district, Westside neighborhoods, and the streetcar suburbs of Culver City, Mar Vista, and Palms.

CA-38: (PVI: D+17; Linda Sanchez, D-Orange): This district encompasses much of what is known as the Gateway Cities. This area certainly has such a feeling, being mostly modest and dense 20th century suburbs bisected by freeways and railway lines. It also gets its name from being the traditional “gateway” for the upwardly-mobile from South-Central
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CA-39: (PVI: EVEN; Ed Royce, R-Fullerton): This district, the land of the fabled Clinton Republican with whom lie the hope and dreams of the Democrats in 2018, surrounds the tri-point where Los Angeles, Orange, and San Bernardino Counties meet, includes the city of Fullerton, with its massive state university, and a lot of late 20th century subdivisions.

CA-40: (PVI: D+33; Lucille Roybal, D-Downey): This district includes East Los Angeles, Historic South Central, and more of the Gateway Cities (specifically, the ones with the crazy corrupt city councils.) It’s my opinion that the City of Los Angeles ought to annex this all.

CA-41: (PVI: D+12; Mark Takano, D-Riverside): This Inland-Empire district centers on the city of Riverside with its university. To the northwest lies Jurupa Valley (large-lot suburbs). To the southeast lies the sprawling, pre-crash boomburbs of Moreno Valley and Perris. This area offers an interesting lesson in overspeculation and impoverished, yet brand new, exurbs. No matter which chunk of this district you’re in, you’re in for a life of commuting hell.

CA-42: (PVI: R+9; Ken Calvert, R-Corona): This district, southeast of the aforementioned one, has many of its characteristics. However, its boomburbs are less dysfunctional and its commutes are even worse. Also, there are Republicans.

CA-43: (PVI: D+29; Maxine Waters, D-Inglewood): This district includes swathes of older, very diverse suburbs south of Los Angeles, such as Torrance, Lawndale, Gardena, and Inglewood; Los Angeles neighborhoods like Westchester; part of LAX Airport; and a chunk of South Central.

CA-44: (PVI: D+35; Nanette Barragan, D-Los Angeles): At its southern tip, this district includes the harbor front, yet relatively isolates Los Angeles neighborhoods of San Pedro and Wilmington, as well as their very busy port. To the north, it includes more of the Gateway Cities.

CA-45: (PVI: R+3; Mimi Walters; R-Laguna Niguel): Yet another Clinton-Republican Orange County district, it includes much of inland Orange County--bits of Anaheim and Orange to the north, and Irvine, with its office parks and villages™ creeping up and over the hills, courtesy of the Irvine Company ®, to the south.

CA-46: (PVI: D+15; Lou Correa, D-Santa Ana): This district covers the very diverse, urban areas  of Orange County which existed prior to the Irvine Company ®. Cities like Anaheim, Orange, Garden Grove, Fountain Valley, and Santa Ana exist primarily within this inland district.

CA-47: (PVI: D+13; Alan Lowenthal, D-Long Beach): This district, which West Wing aficionados know is where Sam Seaborne ran for congress), includes the dense, diverse, and affordable beachfront city of Long Beach, a massive port, and the very, very Vietnamese cities of Garden Grove and Westminster in adjacent Orange County. It also includes Santa Catalina Island.

CA-48: (PVI: R+4; Dana Rohrabacher, R-Costa Mesa): This elongated district, containing Technocracy Timmy and Clinton Republicans just like him, stretches southeast along almost the entirety of the Orange County Coast. From the northwest, it includes military Seal Beach, older-suburban Huntington Beach, working class Costa Mesa, very not working class Newport Beach, and very, very not working class Laguna Beach. Inland, there are portions of Fountain Valley and Garden Grove, as well as the planned suburbs of Laguna Niguel and Aliso Viejo.

CA-49: (PVI: R+1; Darrell Issa, R-Vista): Fittingly represented by the wealthiest man in congress, the 49th is coastal and affluent. This district centers on San Diego County’s of Oceanside, Carlsbad, and Vista, before ending just north of San Diego City limits in quaint Del Mar. To the north, it includes the Orange County beach towns of Dana Point and San Clemente.

CA-50: (PVI: R+11; Duncan Hunter, R-Lakeside): This mountainous district, which will either be represented in 2019 by an obnoxious vaper or and obnoxious alarm-maker, includes the geographic majority of San Diego County, but its population is concentrated in its west, in suburbs like Escondido, San Marcos, and Santee. It also includes a small portion of southern Riverside County boomburbs (remember--long commutes).

CA-51: (PVI: D+ 22; Juan Vargas, D-Golden Hill): This bizarrely shaped district starts in vibrant Downtown San Diego, then extends east and south through historic neighborhoods to the Mexican border, which it follows in a long finger to the Arizona border, from where it includes the Salton sea (weird)  and the Imperial Valley (watermelons in February)

CA-52: (PVI: D+6; Scott Peters, D-San Diego): This San Diego district includes the coastal neighborhoods of Coronado (cool hotel), Point Loma (hilly), Mission Bay (#FreeShamu), Little Italy (trendy condos), Pacific Beach (hip), La Jolla (picturesque, rich, occasionally home to Mitt Romney). It also includes inland neighborhoods like Carmel Valley (tract homes), Sorrento Valley (biotech), University City (UC), Miramar (military), and Sorrento Mesa (older tract homes.)

CA-53: (PVI: D+14; Susan Davis, D-San Diego): This San Diego district starts just north of Downtown and includes Balboa Park, a lot of historic and very cool neighborhoods), Mission Valley (unplanned Irvine), El Cajon/Citrus Grove (older tract homes), and eastern Chula Vista (New Urbanist™ tract homes.)

[Starry Eyed Jagaloon]

[Torie]

CA-47 contains my favorite hood in SoCal, Belmont Heights, so it. MY second favorite is CA-28 which includes Silverlake (a hood that you did not mention in your otherwise quite well done tour de horizon writeup), which is just shameful).

[Starry Eyed Jagaloon]

CA-47 contains my favorite hood in SoCal, Belmont Heights, so it. MY second favorite is CA-28 which includes Silverlake (a hood that you did not mention in your otherwise quite well done tour de horizon writeup), which is just shameful).

I had to keep it under 11,000 characters, so I lumped it in with NELA.

[Mr. Smith]

St. Babs and the Sur ends of Big Sur are the least crappy parts of So-so Cal

CA-24

[Co-Chair Bagel23]

Ca 42nd, literally the best.

[Mike Thick]

Lifelong resident of (present-day) 26. The hills are already starting to recover from the dark brownish-black we saw after the fires to their usual, soothing, pastel shade of beige.

In all seriousness, the 26th is pretty hard to match. Safe as long as you stay out of the wrong areas of Oxnard, by the ocean, a nice mix of semi-urban areas and access to secluded spots around Ojai. In particular, my hometown is very pleasant, quite walkable, and rebuilding quickly.

[Ronnie]

I'm pretty partial to CDs 37 (which is the one I live in right now), 33, and 30 because they're the ones I've lived in my whole life.  There are some boring sections, and a ton of wealthy residential neighborhoods, but I've learned to adjust to the good and the bad.  Venice, Santa Monica, Sherman Oaks, Encino, Malibu, Manhattan Beach, and Culver City are all great places to live and be.

[Starry Eyed Jagaloon]

I'm surprised the 33rd isn't winning. I guess people don't like Beverly Hills/Westwood/Santa Monica as much as I expected. The popularity of the 47th reminds me I ought to head down to Long Beach some time. Its a real hidden treasure.

[Ronnie]

I'm surprised the 33rd isn't winning. I guess people don't like Beverly Hills/Westwood/Santa Monica as much as I expected. The popularity of the 47th reminds me I ought to head down to Long Beach some time. Its a real hidden treasure.

Westwood (which is where I live) is a pretty boring place in itself.  There are a couple attractions in the Village, like the Hammer Museum, but otherwise, it's just full of shops, mediocre restaurants, unaffordable homes, and college students.   Its main draw is its proximity to UCLA and cities like Brentwood, Santa Monica, Sherman Oaks, West L.A., and Beverly Hills.  Incidentally, I'd say Brentwood suffers from the same problem of being a relatively boring bedroom community.  It's also worth noting that Karen Bass (representative from district 37) represents part of the town, namely the portion north of Santa Monica Blvd and south of Wilshire Blvd.  

Beverly Hills and Santa Monica are both measurably more interesting, and have the benefit of not being under the jurisdiction of the city of L.A., but there are still a number of issues with them, like the fact that housing is even more unaffordable in those cities than in most other Westside areas.  Many of the attractions, particularly in Beverly Hills, are also quite pricey.  I've learned to like them, but I think it's understandable that some people would find them unappetizing.

[An American Tail: Fubart Goes West]

St. Babs and the Sur ends of Big Sur are the least crappy parts of So-so Cal

CA-24

This.

I like parts of the 8th, but they're the parts that aren't really SoCal.

[Lechasseur]

I've never been to California and I'd only consider moving there if I got a really good job offer but I'd imagine either the suburbs to the north of LA or somewhere around Sans Diego (but I'm saying this with very little knowledge of the region).

[HillGoose]

CA-52

[Thunder98 🇮🇱 🤝 🇵🇸]

CA-24 obviously

[Torie]

CA-48 where I used to live in Laguna Niguel. It is an area packed with Clinton Republicans, and ex Republicans, and Dana is kind of a kook and not particularly personally pleasant, who has a weird love or something like that for Putin's Russia. And even though he was a rock and roll stone head as a young man, whom I knew personally, he morphed into waging a war on porn, before discovering his love for the new Russia (he does speak fluent Russian). And now he is fighting for his political life, and may well go down. I hope he does. When I first moved to Laguna Niguel in 1984, it was close to 2 to 1 Pub. It would still be 3-2 Pub if the Pub Party had not gone down the road it has gone down.

[tallguy23]

I live in the 28th so I'm biased, but it's definitely a lively and diverse district. Having said that, the 52nd and 33rd also have a lot to do (downtown LA and San Diego).

In terms of physical beauty, you can't beat the 24th and 48th. Both represent the idealized California beach life.

[Very Legal & Very Cool]

CA 28
CA 34
CA 53