# Kevin Lincoln II **Former Mayor of Stockton, California (2021–2024)**, Marine Corps veteran (served on the Marine One detail under George W. Bush), and pastor running in the 2026 top-two primary for [[CA-13-2026]] against freshman Democrat [[Adam Gray]]. **Trump endorsement** ([[Truth Social]], December 2025) and **Speaker Mike Johnson endorsement** — the establishment-MAGA consensus pick. Q1 2026: ~$1.26M raised, leading the GOP field in cash. ## 2026 cycle - **Primary date**: **2026-06-02** (California top-two) - **GOP field**: Lincoln (Trump + Speaker endorsed, cash leader), Kruttiventi (CRA endorsement, tech entrepreneur), Lopez (Duarte-endorsed), Escobedo (NPP, verify active) - **Top-two mechanics**: Three funded Republicans splitting the GOP vote makes a D-R general (Gray + one Republican) the most likely outcome - **Notable intra-party split**: 2024 incumbent [[John Duarte]] endorsed **Javier Lopez**, not Lincoln — a real signal of CA-13 Republican-establishment resistance to the MAGA-endorsed candidate ## Background - **Stockton, CA** — mayoral base (population ~320K; partial in CA-13 post-Prop 50) - **U.S. Marine Corps** — veteran; served on the Marine One helicopter security detail during the George W. Bush administration - **Pastor** — religious-leadership lane (specific church / denomination NEEDS VERIFICATION) - **2020**: Defeated incumbent Michael Tubbs (D) for Stockton mayor — a nationally-noted result, as Tubbs had been a rising progressive star and UBI-experiment leader - **Mayor of Stockton, 2021–2024** — one term - **2024**: Did not seek re-election as mayor (successor / circumstances NEEDS VERIFICATION) - First federal-office run ## Ideological positioning - Establishment-Trump lane — endorsed by both Trump AND Speaker Johnson, a rare unified national-GOP signal - Stockton-mayor track record adds executive-government credibility - Pastor / Marine / ex-mayor profile conforms to high-credential Republican recruiting archetype for toss-up districts - Must persuade, not just mobilize — Stockton's ~15-point D registration advantage means his 2020 Tubbs win involved significant D / independent crossover ## Related - [[CA-13-2026]] — 2026 race file - [[Adam Gray]] — Democratic incumbent - [[Javier Lopez]], [[Vin Kruttiventi]] — GOP primary competitors - [[John Duarte]] — 2024 incumbent Gray unseated; endorsed Lopez instead of Lincoln - [[Donald Trump]] — endorsed Lincoln December 2025 - [[Mike Johnson]] — endorsed Lincoln ## Sources - [Ballotpedia — Kevin Lincoln](https://ballotpedia.org/Kevin_Lincoln) - [Ballotpedia — CA-13 2026](https://ballotpedia.org/California's_13th_Congressional_District_election,_2026) - [Yahoo News — Trump/Johnson endorsements](https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/central-valley-republican-nabs-endorsements-000337327.html)