California GOP Congressman Doug LaMalfa dies unexpectedly at age 65

Golden State Republican’s death reduces already minuscule House GOP majority

California Representative Doug LaMalfa has died unexpectedly at age 65, reducing the House Republican majority to just two votes and putting House Speaker Mike Johnson’s hold on power in an even more tenuous state.

LaMalfa’s death after more than a decade representing the state’s First Congressional District was announced by the House Republican Conference on X in a post which called him “a lifelong resident of Northern California and a fourth-generation rice farmer” who “spent more than two decades in public service.”

The California Republican previously served in both chambers of the state legislature before he came to Congress in 2013. A hardline conservative, he frequently voted in line with President Donald Trump, who praised LaMalfa Tuesday.

Rep. Doug LaMalfa, R-Calif., is seen on Capitol Hill on November 30, 2012. He died on January 6, 2026. (AFP/Getty)

“He was the leader of the Western caucus, a fierce champion on California water issues,” Trump said during an address to the House Republican conference. “He was great on water. He wanted to release the water and scream out. And a true defender of American children. He was a defender of everybody, and in our hearts go out to his wife, Jill and his entire family.”

Trump also said he appreciated that LaMalfa voted with the administration 100 percent of the time and never called for extraneous favors. LaMalfa also voted to object to the 2020 presidential election results in two states after the January 6 riot.

At the same time, during Joe Biden’s final State of the Union address, he patiently staked out at the doors of the Capitol to ask Biden to address the forest fires in his state.

LaMalfa’s death reduces Republicans’ majority from 219 to 218, the exact number needed to reach a majority in the House of Representatives. Marjorie Taylor Greene formally resigned from Congress on Monday.

Democrats have 213 seats in the House after Mikie Sherrill of New Jersey won the governorship and Sylvester Turner of Texas died in March of last year. Texas will hold its special election runoff to replace Turner at the end of the month.

This means Republicans cannot afford to lose a single vote to pass their priority legislation.

But LaMalfa’s California district would likely also be endangered later this year. In November, California voted to pass Proposition 50, which would allow for a one-time mid-decade redraw of the state’s congressional districts to give congressional Democrats five new congressional seats. His district, which has been heavily in support of Republicans, would become one with a population that supports Democrats.

The move came after Texas redrew its congressional maps to give Republicans an advantage going into the 2026 midterm elections.