California gave the nation its first Black vice president. But no part of the state has sent a Black man to Congress in more than 20 years.
It's a statistic so surprising that not even Black men running for House seats this cycle were aware of the drought in representation until the Los Angeles Times highlighted it in November.
"I can truthfully tell you that no, it never crossed my mind," said Quaye Quartey, a Black Democrat who is running against Rep. Mike Garcia, R-Calif., and third-time Democratic candidate Christy Smith in Tuesday's primary.
