Katie Porter wins re-election in California after days of counting
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Progressive favorite Katie Porter wins re-election after days of counting

Porter won a third term in Congress after defeating former state Assemblyman Scott Baugh, NBC News projects.
Representative Katie Porter (D-CA) speaks during a press conference on the national school meals program with advocates and other Congress members, at the U.S. Capitol, in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, September 15, 2022. (Graeme Sloan/Sipa USA)(Sipa via AP Images)
Rep. Katie Porter, D-Calif., at the U.S. Capitol, on Sept. 15, 2022.Graeme Sloan / Sipa USA via AP file

WASHINGTON — Rep. Katie Porter, D-Calif., the whiteboard-wielding lawmaker and progressive star, won her re-election race, NBC News projected on Friday.

After days of vote counting, Porter staved off a challenge from former state Assemblyman Scott Baugh, a Republican, to win a third term in Congress.

President Joe Biden called Porter on Wednesday night to congratulate her on the victory.

Porter, 48, is best known for viral videos of her sharp questioning of witnesses testifying before Congress. The former law school professor often used a dry-erase board to list user-friendly facts and figures to make her point.

She has served in the House since 2019, representing the 45th Congressional District, and is deputy chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus.

In the 2022 midterm election cycle, Porter raised more than $23 million compared to Baugh, who raised more than $2 million, according to Federal Election Commission filings.

Baugh, 60, served as an assemblyman in California's Legislature from 1995 to 2000. During his last year in the statehouse, he was the assembly's GOP leader. More recently, Baugh was chairman of the Orange County Republican Party, from 2004 to 2015.

The 47th Congressional District in coastal Orange County between Long Beach and San Clemente was once been dominated by Republicans but now is more mixed.

The race for the new 47th Congressional District seat had been listed as a “toss up” by the nonpartisan Cook Political Report.