The Case Against Kevin Lincoln

Kevin Lincoln is a partisan Republican operative, failed mayor, and two-time loser who has chased political promotions while doing nothing to help Central Valley families struggling with rising costs, unaffordable housing, and threats to their health care. Now, Lincoln is running for Congress once again to become another reliable vote for his party’s deeply unpopular agenda of gutting health care, slashing food assistance, and handing massive tax breaks to billionaires while working families fall further behind.

Valley voters know Lincoln’s record, and they’ve rejected it before. As mayor of Stockton, Lincoln presided over rising crime, police staffing shortages, soaring housing costs, and higher health care expenses for city workers. Lincoln prioritized political ambition, taxpayer-funded vanity projects, and positioning himself for another congressional run, this time in CA-13 after losing in CA-09. Even a local observer described his tenure as “politically inept” and “unlikely to accomplish much.” Now, he is running as an outsider in a district he doesn’t live in, and can’t even vote for himself.

A lifelong Valley resident with deep roots in the community, Adam Gray has built a reputation as a pragmatic, independent problem-solver focused on delivering results instead of partisan theater. In Congress, Adam has worked across party lines to lower costs, defend Valley agriculture and water access, crack down on fentanyl trafficking, strengthen local law enforcement, and protect access to affordable health care. While Kevin Lincoln answers to Republican insiders in Washington, Adam Gray serves the people of the Central Valley.

That contrast is exactly why Adam won the closest House race in America in 2024. Even before Prop 50, Gray overperformed the top of the ticket and won in a Trump +5 district that had swung sharply to the right because Valley voters trust him to put the Valley ahead of politics. Kevin Lincoln enters this race already defined by his failed mayoral record, his selfish political ambitions, and his loyalty to an increasingly toxic national Republican brand voters hate more every day.

Kevin Lincoln’s Record as Mayor Was Defined by Mismanagement and Rising Costs

Kevin Lincoln campaigned for mayor promising to improve public safety. Instead, Stockton saw rising crime, severe police staffing shortages, and overstretched emergency response systems under his watch. Residents watched city services crumble while Lincoln kept focused on his next campaign for higher office.

Lincoln has already made life more expensive for working families. Housing costs surged during his tenure, utility rates climbed, and city workers faced rising health care premiums approved under his administration. When families needed relief, Lincoln failed to deliver affordability or economic stability. Rather than prioritize key city services, Lincoln backed costly vanity projects and misplaced spending priorities – including more than $1.5 million for lavish arena upgrades and expensive renovations to his City Hall office while Stockton continued struggling with homelessness, deteriorating infrastructure, and strained public resources.

Lincoln also repeatedly dodged tough questions about his record and refused to answer – or fumbled his way through – questions about his most extreme views.

Meanwhile, Adam Gray has been a consistent advocate for safer communities, stronger local economies, and practical solutions. He has consistently backed local law enforcement, worked with Republicans and Democrats alike to combat fentanyl trafficking to make the Central Valley safer, and delivered over $16 million in federal resources directly back to the Valley for local priorities.

While Kevin Lincoln has mismanaged every position he’s ever held, dodged accountability, and now wants to bring that failed record to the Valley, Adam Gray has proved himself an effective legislative force who knows how to get real results.

Kevin Lincoln Is a Partisan Insider, Not an Independent Voice for the Valley

Kevin Lincoln has spent years positioning himself as a political insider. After losing his congressional race last cycle, Lincoln immediately shifted districts following California’s redistricting changes in search of a more favorable political opportunity, even though he doesn’t live in the new district.

Lincoln’s ties to the Republican political machine run deep. Reporting revealed Lincoln received more than $50,000 directly from the California Republican Party and refused to explain the nature of the payments when it was exposed. New disclosures now put the total to over $80,000. His campaign is bankrolled by the same national Republicans desperately trying to cling to an increasingly unpopular House majority.

Lincoln’s total reliance on party leaders is a major liability in a district where voters are increasingly exhausted by extremism and Washington dysfunction. National Republicans face historically poor approval numbers as Americans grow more frustrated with rising costs, threats to health care, and economic instability thanks to Republican control in Washington. Even GOP lawmakers have acknowledged the danger their narrow House majority faces heading into November.

Kevin Lincoln is an outsider who won’t provide independence or balance in Congress because he has already pledged blind loyalty to his far-right party bosses. Unlike Lincoln, Adam Gray has built his career on working across the aisle and putting Valley priorities ahead of party politics. Whether it’s public safety, agriculture, water, or affordability, Gray has repeatedly shown he’s willing to work with anyone to deliver results for the Valley.

Kevin Lincoln will be a Rubber Stamp for the Republican Agenda in Congress

Kevin Lincoln has made clear exactly who he would work for in Congress: Donald Trump, Speaker Mike Johnson, and D.C. Republicans. Lincoln said he was “honored” for the “complete and total” endorsements from Trump and Republican leadership – effectively promising voters he would serve as another reliable vote for the same Republican agenda that is driving up costs and threatening health care for Valley families.

The Lincoln-backed Big, Ugly Bill rips away health coverage for more than 62,000 people in CA-13, jeopardizes hospitals already operating on thin margins, and puts food assistance at risk for tens of thousands of families who rely on SNAP to make ends meet. The Valley produces 25% of the nation’s food, yet chaotic cost-raising tariff policies are creating enormous uncertainty for Valley farmers and agriculture workers whose livelihoods depend on stable export markets.

Lincoln has also aligned himself with an economic agenda centered on rewarding billionaires and large corporations while exploding the national debt. Republicans’ Big, Ugly Bill delivers over $1 trillion in tax cuts to the wealthiest Americans while working families face higher prices for groceries, gas, utilities, and health care. Instead of fighting for economic relief for the Valley, Lincoln stands with the billionaires and special interests who are making life more expensive for working families.

While Kevin Lincoln flies into the district and campaigns with national Republicans, Adam Gray is working to strengthen the Valley’s economic backbone. Adam has emerged as Congress’ strongest advocate for Valley health care, agriculture and rural communities, building bipartisan coalitions to protect farmers, lower costs, and expand the region’s economy. He helped advance a bipartisan Farm Bill, opposed reckless tariffs harming agricultural trade, expanded water infrastructure projects, and introduced legislation to grow the region’s water supply and agricultural future.

That’s why Gray has built one of the broadest coalitions in California politics – earning support from local elected leaders, labor groups, agriculture leaders, and Valley stakeholders across all five counties who trust him to put results ahead of partisanship.

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING

Sacramento Bee: Lincoln reports salary from California Republican Party [Sacramento Bee, 12/18/25]

“Party officials and a Lincoln campaign aide confirmed the Stockton Republican was on the state GOP’s payroll for several months this spring but that he left the job before announcing his congressional reelection campaign. Both declined to comment further.

Democrats equated the salary to Lincoln’s working as a party operative.”

Stocktonia Opinion: Mayor Lincoln has been politically inept [Stocktonia, 6/21/23]

San Diego Voice & Viewpoint: California Political Playbook [SD Voice, 11/12/25]

“Lincoln’s tenure as mayor drew criticism for rising crime rates, mismanagement of law enforcement, higher housing and utility costs, and city spending on arena upgrades and office renovations. He has also faced scrutiny for anti-choice positions and for celebrating the overturning of Roe v. Wade without clarifying his stance on abortion access for military service members.”

Turlock Journal: Gray officially kicks off reelection campaign for CA-13 [Turlock Journal, 3/12/26]

“Gray is way out in front of his opponents when it comes to fundraising. With roughly $1.25 million cash on hand to start the year…his war chest is…more than six times the size of Lincoln’s.” 

Turlock Journal: Gray earns key endorsement from California Farm Bureau [Turlock Journal, 4/23/26]

“The CFB endorsed Republican incumbent John Duarte in 2024 – a race that Gray won by a mere 187 votes after losing by a slim 564-vote margin to Duarte two years earlier.

The California Farm Bureau is a leading voice in the state’s powerful agricultural sector.”

ABC30: Valley Congressman proposes new bipartisan effort to crack down on fentanyl crisis [ABC 30, 12/5/25]

Turlock Journal: Congressman Gray introduces Valley Water Protection Act [Turlock Journal, 6/18/25]

“Valley farmers and producers are the backbone of our community’s economy but increasingly have to worry about whether they will have reliable access to the water necessary to continue their production…For years, greedy state and federal bureaucrats have attempted to rob the Valley of its water…jeopardizing the agricultural production that funds our state and feeds the country. By introducing the Valley Water Protection Act, I’m sending those who would dry out the Valley a clear message: the tap is turned off.”

KSEE24: How Congressman Adam Gray plans to ‘get stuff done’ [KSEE24, 5/15/25]

Fresno Bee Editorial: California Democrat wants to fix the looming health crisis. GOP is quiet [Fresno Bee, 9/26/25]

“‘The reality is (Republicans are) decimating health care for the American people. This is about destroying the progress we’ve made in trying to improve our healthcare system and the way it delivers services across the country.’

…The rural poor who tend to be concentrated in the San Joaquin Valley will suffer the most as the loss of health insurance and community clinics will drive them to bypass care until they have to go visit hospital emergency rooms.”

Cook Political Report: Eighteen House Ratings Shift Toward Democrats [Cook Political Report, 1/15/26]

“Gray’s ability to overperform [the top of the ticket] by several points — particularly in his base of Merced — should give him the edge in 2026… 

Signs of reversion among Latino Trump voters…make [Republicans’] task tougher.”

PATH TO VICTORY
California’s 13th Congressional District remains one of the most competitive districts in the country. Gray proved his strength by winning the closest House race in America in 2024, prevailing by 187 votes in a Trump +5 district that swung more than 16 points to the right at the top of the ticket under old lines. Few Democrats in the country demonstrated stronger crossover appeal.

CA-13 retains 83% of its prior voters while adding more voters from San Joaquin and Stanislaus Counties – areas where Gray has built deep relationships and strong local support. Merced and Stanislaus Counties remain the district’s largest population centers and core parts of Gray’s coalition. Gray also has the clear cash advantage – $1.74 million on hand, more than four times Lincoln’s $428,000 despite being bankrolled by GOP party bosses.

This race will offer voters a crystal-clear choice. Kevin Lincoln is a failed mayor, partisan operative, and rubber stamp for a deeply unpopular agenda that raises costs and guts health care. Adam Gray is an independent voice for the Valley with a proven record of delivering results, lowering costs, defending agriculture, and standing up for working families. In a district looking for pragmatic leadership to deliver commonsense solutions, Adam’s undeniable crossover appeal and bipartisan record puts him in a strong position to hold CA-13.