The last time Rep. Jimmy Gomez, D-Calif., faced a primary challenge, special interest groups came to his aid by pouring more than $1 million into the race.

Today, in the 2026 race, another challenger is trying their hand against Gomez — and they have the backing of progressive outfit Justice Democrats.

Supporters of Angela Gonzales-Torres think she’ll be able to fight off spending from the pro-Israel and cryptocurrency lobby groups that dominated Gomez’s last primary. Justice Democrats said it will help Gonzales-Torres raise money through its grassroots, digital funding network.

“Being deemed progressive isn’t the same as delivering real change.”

Gonzales-Torres, a former Highland Park neighborhood council president, launched her campaign against Gomez in April, saying the incumbent had sold out the congressional district thanks to the influx of special interest money.

“I didn’t move to this district to become a politician funded by corporate super PACs,” said Gonzales-Torres, who was born and raised in North East LA. “We need to recognize that being deemed progressive isn’t the same as delivering real change.”

Gonzales-Torres criticized Gomez for not signing onto progressive bills that would have conditioned arms sales to Israel, stanched the flow of corporate cash in politics, and tackled price gouging.

“It isn’t just about calling for someone’s resignation,” she told The Intercept. “It’s about answering for our calls as Angelenos.”

Justice Democrats said Gomez’s leadership isn’t meeting the moment in a city that President Donald Trump has flooded with ICE agents and National Guard troops.

“Jimmy Gomez got to Washington and closed the door on his community behind him to embrace the same corporate PACs and right-wing lobbies that are raising costs for Angelenos and demanding their tax dollars fund genocide,” said Justice Democrats spokesperson Usamah Andrabi. “In a city that has become ground zero for Donald Trump’s war on immigrant families, Angelenos deserve a leader whose donors will never dictate how hard they fight back.”

Defended by AIPAC

Gonzales-Torres is the second challenger Gomez has faced in recent years from his left. In office since 2017, Gomez easily beat a challenge during his first term from Kenneth Mejia, now the Los Angeles city controller. In each of the last three elections, Gomez fended off more credible challenges from Democrat........

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