Court Win Means McCarthy Protégé Allowed To Run For Congress

It hasn't exactly been great news for Kevin McCarthy as of late, but it now appears as though he's getting at least one small win.

Or, at least, his protégé is.

Vince Fong, a former McCarthy staffer who was immediately endorsed by his former boss once he decided on a congressional run, was in danger of not being allowed to run for the latter's vacant House seat.

Luckily for Fong, a judge ruled on Dec. 28 that he could proceed as a candidate to replace McCarthy after all.

The ruling was made by Superior Court Judge Shellyanne W.L. Chang and caps off a chaotic start to the race to replace the congressman who also served as speaker of the House.

McCarthy announced he was retiring from Congress shortly after being removed as House speaker when some Republicans crossed the aisle to boot him out.

The decision regarding Fong's candidacy was in response to a decision rendered earlier by Shirley Weber, California's secretary of state.

Weber's office said that Fong's candidacy violated the state's election code due to the fact that he was already on the ballot for a different office.

Judge Chang did not agree, saying that the statute Weber was referring to "is inapplicable to Fong and cannot be used as a reason to preclude him" from the primary ballot.

Fong celebrated after the ruling:

"Today’s ruling is a victory for the voters of the 20th Congressional District, who will now have the opportunity to select the candidate of their choice in the March 5th election," he said. "I am grateful that Judge Chang upheld the integrity of our elections and sided with Central Valley voters against an overreaching Sacramento politician."

Do you think that the judge made the right decision in this case regarding Fong?

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