ELK GROVE, CA (MPG) - Republican candidate Zachariah Wooden said his 2026 campaign for California’s Congressional District 7 is driven by his firsthand experience with the state’s rising cost of living and a desire to bring what he called a “fresher perspective” to Washington ahead of the June 2 primary election.

A Woodbridge resident and student at California State University, Sacramento, Wooden is among the candidates seeking to represent the district, which spans portions of Sacramento and San Joaquin counties, which includes the cities of Elk Grove, Galt and Lodi.

Wooden said his background includes public service and housing policy work. He currently serves on the Woodbridge Municipal Advisory Council, where he acts as a liaison between residents and San Joaquin County officials on local issues. He was appointed to the council in 2023.

“It’s incredibly local,” Wooden said of the role. “When the county makes decisions, ultimately we’re helping advise the county on what the Woodbridge (community) would like to see in those decisions, and then vice versa… informing residents what those decisions mean for them on a local basis.”

He also works as an executive assistant for New Genesis Housing Development, an affordable housing nonprofit serving the greater Central Valley. Wooden, who said he is currently preparing to enter his final year at Sacramento State, also serves in a higher education advocacy role as a member of the university’s Associated Students body. 

Wooden said those experiences have shaped his understanding of District 7’s diverse populations, which now include urban, suburban and rural communities with varying needs following redistricting under Proposition 50.

“My age allows me to take a fresher, perhaps even bolder, take in terms of what policies could be done to better represent the district as a whole,” Wooden said. “That’s why I’m running, not only because of a fresher perspective, but also because of a more well-grounded perspective.”

Affordability, particularly related to housing and infrastructure development, is a central focus of Wooden’s campaign. He said representatives in Congress should work to reduce delays in housing, energy and infrastructure projects to help lower costs for California residents.

“A lot of it has to do with the time it takes to get projects done,” Wooden said. “One of the most common complaints that you hear about any infrastructure project is that it takes too long for the project to actually have a positive impact.”

“That ties back to housing; that ties back to infrastructure; that ties back to energy,” Wooden added. “All of that really has to be about cutting out the middleman.”                                                 

Wooden said that, if elected to represent District 7 in Congress, he would support streamlining federal permitting and planning processes to reduce project costs and speed up transportation and water infrastructure improvements.

Public safety is spotlighted as another key issue in Wooden’s campaign, he said. Drawing from his work on the municipal advisory council, he pointed to concerns about human trafficking and crime along major transportation corridors such as Interstate 5 and Highway 99.

“We have to give public safety the tools they need to encounter these issues,” Wooden said. “A lot of these arterial networks are being used for trafficking… I believe that the role of a congressperson should be providing that funding for those tools to be used.”

Wooden also emphasized the importance of government accountability as one of his political priorities, noting Congress should be more adamant about investigating waste and fraud in federal spending. 

“Every tax dollar that’s wasted through waste and fraud has to be accounted for,” he said. 

“We have to follow where the dollar goes, and if the dollar actually had an impact or an outcome that was intended when the dollar was sent there in the first place,” Wooden added, noting areas such as healthcare infrastructure spending as reference to that need for accountability.

Among the several issues discussed during the interview, Wooden repeatedly emphasized the cost of living as the district’s most pressing concern, saying it is closely tied to many of the other challenges residents face.

“Cost of living has to be the top priority, that’s the issue that animated the 2024 presidential election and for good reason, he said.

Wooden also emphasized the need to expand domestic energy production, create pathways to homeownership for residents starting out their life or meeting benchmarks and strengthen job opportunities to help those in the district achieve the “American Dream.”

For voters in the region, Wooden said he hopes they recognize that his background in public service, housing policy work, commuting to attend college and entering the workforce as a younger candidate offers a perspective that differs from the more established politicians in this congressional race.

“There’s only really one candidate that is actively experiencing it, and that’s myself,” Wooden said, referring specifically to the cost of living in California and District 7.

“I’m on the front line of dealing with these issues, but I have the experience of engaging with these issues on the policy level,” he said. “I’m informed, I’m experienced and I’m ready to represent this district.”