Harder, Josh

Josh Harder represents California's 9th congressional district, which encompasses much of San Joaquin County including Stockton, Tracy, Lodi, and Manteca. First elected to Congress in 2018 after defeating Republican incumbent Jeff Denham, he has served continuously since then, initially representing the 10th district before redistricting placed him in the 9th district for his current term beginning in 2023. Before entering electoral politics, Harder worked in venture capital as a vice president at Bessemer Venture Partners, where he was hired in 2014 at the firm's New York office before relocating to San Francisco in 2016. He left the venture capital sector in 2017 to campaign full-time, returning to his hometown of Turlock and taking on a teaching role at Modesto Junior College.

In the House, Harder serves on the Committee on Appropriations, with assignments to three subcommittees: Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies; and Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies. His legislative work reflects these committee assignments and broader constituent interests, including sponsorship of bills addressing housing, firefighter support, healthcare access, and consumer protection. Across his tenure, he has sponsored 67 bills, demonstrating active engagement in the legislative process on matters ranging from disaster relief to fraud prevention.