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Denham Re-Elected, Has Oakdale Issues On Radar
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Congressman Jeff Denham has a list of local matters to take on as he prepares to take over the newly drawn 10th Congressional District. On Tuesday, Nov 6, Denham defeated Democratic challenger Jose Hernandez by taking 54 percent of votes cast.

With the redrawing of Congressional district boundaries as a result of the 2010 census, all of Stanislaus County and the San Joaquin County cities of Escalon, Tracy, Ripon, and Manteca are in the new 10th Congressional District.

As part of his victory, Denham was able to overcome a host of negative television and radio ads financed by Democrats over the past few months.

"You win elections because you're out there talking to people neighbor to neighbor, door to door, no matter what they say about you on TV," Denham said in a victory speech on election night. "You're out there telling the truth.”

In an interview with The Leader on Nov. 8, Denham said he spent time in Oakdale during his campaign walking door-to-door and meeting constituents that were in his previous 19th District, which covered eastern Stanislaus County where he served five terms.

As a result of his re-election, Denham said he can continue with the legislative plan he set out with earlier in his Washington DC tenure.

“There are some big bills going on right now,” Denham said. “Water storage is a big issue not only for Oakdale but throughout the state.”

Other concerns are to address the farm bill that he said affects many dairies and specialty crops.

“Now that the election is over I can go back and see what’s going to happen with this ‘lame duck’ term,” said Denham.

Denham added that he will be addressing jobs and higher taxes that have been a huge challenge for the area.

“The death tax is rising to 55 to 60 percent,” said Denham. “That has an effect on farms more than households across the nation. Many farmers are ‘cash poor’ but ‘land rich.’”

Denham said he received a huge amount of support in the Oakdale area from elected officials and many volunteers during his campaign.

“I just want to say ‘thank you’ for giving me the opportunity to serve the community again,” Denham said.

As a result of the new district lines and shift, Denham’s representatives said they will be closing his office in Fresno and are looking to move his Modesto office to a larger facility to handle his staff that will now all be located in one California office.

Denham’s office provides mobile office hours on the first Friday of every month from 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. at the Oakdale Chamber of Commerce. Representatives from his staff are present during these times to provide assistance to constituents on a variety of services and issues, including Medicare, Veteran’s Affairs, Social Security, Internal Revenue Services and other matters regarding federal legislation.