# Cody Wiebelhaus Palm Springs healthcare executive (**Independent Healthcare Consultants**) and the **sole Republican on the ballot** for [[CA-41-2026]] in 2026 — after [[Ken Calvert]] moved to CA-40 following Proposition 50's redistricting. Pitches "standing for the people, not the party"; **openly emphasizes LGBTQ+ advocacy** — unusual for a GOP candidate, politically rational in a Palm Springs-heavy district where LGBTQ+ voters are ~50% of the Palm Springs electorate. ## 2026 cycle - **Primary date**: 2026-06-02 (California top-two jungle) - **The top-two math**: With 5+ Democrats on the ballot splitting the majority vote and only one Republican, Wiebelhaus has a structural-path to the November ballot even in a district that now leans **D+10+** post-Prop 50 — if the D field stays fragmented, he can finish second with 25–30% of the total - **Post-redraw structural lean**: District is now **Harris +12–14** (Sabato effectively Safe D). A Wiebelhaus general-election win would require both reaching the runoff and then overperforming by 15+ points — historically implausible even with crossover-LGBTQ+ appeal - **The appropriations-seniority dividend evaporates from CA-41**: 33 years of Calvert's March Air Reserve Base / Defense Appropriations benefit to the district does not transfer to a first-term successor of either party ## Background - Palm Springs, Riverside County - Independent Healthcare Consultants (founder/executive) — NEEDS VERIFICATION on firm specifics - Healthcare-industry professional career — NEEDS VERIFICATION - First federal-office run ## Ideological positioning - Outlier / heterodox Republican: explicit LGBTQ+ advocacy + Palm Springs geography - "Stand for the people, not the party" is an anti-partisan framing — concedes that the party brand is a problem in the redrawn district and tries to build around it - California's history of GOP pro-LGBTQ+ candidacies has generally not broken through the partisan-ID barrier; Wiebelhaus's path is arithmetic (top-two lockout of D's), not persuasion ## Related - [[CA-41-2026]] — 2026 race file (open seat) - [[Ken Calvert]] — prior CA-41 incumbent, moved to CA-40 - [[Brandon Riker]] — leading Democratic challenger - [[Proposition 50 (California)]] — redistricting measure that reshaped the district ## Sources - [Ballotpedia — Cody Wiebelhaus](https://ballotpedia.org/Cody_Wiebelhaus) - [Ballotpedia — CA-41 2026](https://ballotpedia.org/California's_41st_Congressional_District_election,_2026)