In Sacramento, Democratic city councilwoman Mai Vang faced backlash from local citizens due to her decision to abstain from reciting the Pledge of Allegiance and turning her back on the American flag. This controversy unfolded as she attempted to challenge veteran Congresswoman Doris Matsui in a fiercely contested primary race.
As the initial results trickled in on Tuesday night, Matsui emerged in the lead with 28,950 votes, accounting for 32.6% of the total, according to the Associated Press. Vang followed in second place, securing 22,821 votes, or 25.7%.
Meanwhile, Republican contender Zachariah Wooden was not far behind, capturing third place with 20,079 votes, or 22.6%, putting him in a competitive position as vote counting continued.
California’s unique top-two primary system ensures that the two candidates with the most votes, regardless of their party affiliations, move on to the November runoff election.
Vang’s progressive bid to unseat the 81-year-old Matsui faced additional hurdles as the updated congressional boundaries, shaped by Proposition 50’s redistricting, incorporated more conservative areas such as Lodi, Placerville, and El Dorado Hills.
Aged 41, Vang framed her campaign as a generational shift, challenging the long-standing Democratic stronghold of Matsui, who has represented the Sacramento region since 2005.
But the closing stretch of the campaign became consumed by criticism of Vang’s posture toward the American flag and Pledge of Allegiance.
Vang has refused to recite the Pledge of Allegiance and has turned her back on the flag at multiple public meetings and ceremonies, including a Veterans Day ceremony, Sacramento City Council meetings and district meetings.
She has defended the practice, writing on social media that she uses the moment to “ground” herself and reflect on “the injustices and harm that continue to affect so many, both locally and across the globe, under this nation’s influence.”
Wooden blasted Vang’s refusal to salute the flag as “malicious.”
“To hear that somebody wants to be a sitting member of US Congress and appears to be disinterested in the major symbols of American pride and what it means to be an American, it’s not just disappointing — it’s malicious,” Wooden previously told The Post.
Vang’s campaign tried to shift attention back to Matsui in the final days, accusing the incumbent of working to boost Wooden to edge Vang out of the November runoff.
Vang pointed to a Matsui campaign blog post about Wooden that described the Republican as having a “record of serving the community” while also tying him to President Trump’s policies.
Kevin Liao, a spokesperson for Matsui’s campaign, told the Sacramento Bee the post was intended to contrast Matsui with “extreme Republican ideas.”
Vang accused Matsui of improperly steering super PACs to bankroll and boost Wooden’s campaign “by any means necessary.”
Critics of Vang accused her of trying to become the “AOC of the Central Valley,” a reference to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York.
Steve Maviglio, a Democratic political consultant in Sacramento, called Vang’s actions “completely disrespectful to veterans and their families.”
“You can’t say the Pledge of Allegiance — that’s how extreme you are?” he said. “Come on.”
