California Sen. Alex Padilla is campaigning hard — just not for himself.
Padilla is running for the seat being vacated by retiring Democratic Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, and so far is making the race about more than himself.
He’s running against Giffords’s right-hand man, former U.S. Rep. Ed Pastor, a centrist Democrat, and the two face off for the seat that Republicans hope could flip the House.
Padilla’s run is the most unusual political matchup this election cycle, and it offers a good look at the political divides dividing the nation — and what could lie behind them.
Padilla, 43, was first elected to the House in 2010 when he won a crowded five-way primary against three Democrats. He has since won four more races for his district.
The district has long been a bellwether of national politics, with a wide swath running from the Arizona border to the Pacific Coast. When Congress was debating health care reform last year, the Arizona seat was on a short list of districts where the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee sought to flip control of the House.
Padilla is running against Giffords’s hand-picked successor, former Arizona Rep. Gabby Giffords, who Padilla said in a recent campaign video is “a liar and an opportunist,” who doesn’t even believe in the Constitution.
“I’m running in Washington, DC for a seat that’s being vacated by, by a liar and an opportunist,” Padilla said in his campaign video. “I’m running for Congress to work on behalf of my friends, my neighbors, my family, my community.”
Republicans are running a tight race in the district, where Mitt Romney won with 61 percent in 2012. If the race were held today, Padilla said he would win.
The campaign isn’t without controversy, however. In September, the campaign of Giffords’s hand-picked successor, former Rep. Ed Pastor, accused Padilla of making up a conversation Padilla had with Pastor about a potential appointment by President Barack Obama.
On Nov. 14, Giffords and Pad