California — 50th District

Aishwarya “Sparky” Mitra, 25, a Democrat, scientist and research fellow, is running for Congress representing portions of San Diego and inland North County in California’s 50th Congressional District.

Mitra is a San Diego native who grew up in Texas before moving back to San Diego.

The San Diego Union-Tribune emailed a series of questions to Mitra and other candidates to help inform voters about their positions, priorities and plans if elected.

Mitra said she did not use any AI tools in responding to the Union-Tribune’s questions.

1) Why are you running, and what makes you the best candidate? (150 words max)

I’m running to bring the voices of all San Diegans into every conversation, whether we are renters and student borrowers to queer folks, union workers, immigrants and everyone in between.

I am the best candidate because I have been in and am still working in the community. I have guided direct actions with Fridays for Future USA as a national care coordinator towards this end previously and look forward to continuing the policy fight forward. I previously worked on housing justice as a senior director at Our Time to Act while also prioritizing work democratizing access to science innovation, both at the end of the production cycle but also in their initial development.

As an educator (formerly UAW 2710) and engineer scientist, my philosophy has long been guided by the basic belief that workers’ power must overcome that of the billionaire class to allow for the flourishing of human and planetary health.

2) What are the top 3 issues facing this district? (150 words max)

The top three issues facing this district are homelessness, the affordability crisis and unlawful ICE raids.

3) What are the first 3 things you would do in your first/next term in Congress? (150 words max)

I would pass a bipartisan corporate landlord ban, block the bombs and pass the Green New Deal.

Afterwards, I would work on codifying abortion rights and voting rights, restore science funding while defunding ICE, and work towards passing Medicare for All and the HOMES Act and making public colleges free.

4) If your party wins control of Congress, what should be its first priority? If your party loses control of Congress, what should be its first priority? (100 words max)

If the Democrats win control of Congress, they should impeach Trump, codify abortion access, abolish ICE and block sending weapons to Israel.

If they lose control of Congress, they should pass the bipartisan bans on corporate landlords and insider trading in Congress and block sending weapons to Israel.

5) President Trump has made cracking down on immigration a cornerstone of his administration, ordering widespread arrests and detentions of immigrants nationwide and directing military resources to a new military zone along the U.S.-Mexico border. What impact have these had on this district? What are your goals on immigrants, immigration and the border, and how would you pursue them if elected? What is your message to constituents who are immigrants? (150 words max)

Around 5,000 San Diegans have been arrested under the second Trump administration, and before then, San Diegans have constantly faced threats of terror and deportation under all administrations since ICE’s founding in 2003.

We are demanding care over cruelty. Dignity without delay. And it’s time our representation caught up.

As people across the country are surveilled for merely existing and silenced for speaking out, we must push back against federally-backed campaigns of terror. We must abolish ICE. Trump and his allies are attacking democracy itself, from the rights to protest and exist freely to the rights to fair jobs and livable wages.

We can’t afford to wait this out. With the onslaught of domestic attacks on speech and human rights by our current administration, it is more important than ever to defend and assert our human rights.

This includes re-enshrining, codifying and strengthening our inalienable rights in the United States and abolishing ICE to ensure immigration and the struggle of migrants is treated as a civilian one, requiring support instead of brutality and criminalization.

It also includes limiting DHS funding to FEMA, TSA and similar agencies — not extending funding to CBP and ICE, as has been done by the current representative, who was the only California Democrat to vote to extend DHS funding in early February.

6) It’s been nearly two months since the United States began a war with Iran. Do you believe Americans are better or worse off for it? What should Congress’s role be? Would you vote to let the president continue the war beyond the 60 days after which congressional authorization is required? (150 words max)

Americans were already struggling, and this war has made it infinitely worse. Gas prices are skyrocketing, and $25 billion that could transform American lives were instead sent to bomb Iran. Congress should have the final say and support the war powers resolution. I would NOT vote to let the president continue the war. This campaign is about peace.

7) Recent jumps in the cost of fuel, food and other goods — combined with federal cuts to safety-net programs, new limits on certain federal loans and more — are squeezing residents already struggling with San Diego County’s high costs of living. What relief would you seek to offer, and how? (150 words max)

I would support a price-gouging ban that forbids corporate interests from utilizing market instability to unduly mark up our prices. I would seek to bring in $50 million in federal benefits while finding other ways to offer economic relief, including by passing Medicare for All, making public colleges free for all and increasing access to social housing.

8) Like much of California, this district has been affected by the effects of climate change. How should Congress mitigate those impacts, and what would you do to pursue such efforts? (100 words max)

With the United Nations now determining that we will not be able to stabilize below the already-catastrophic 1.5° Celsius global climate average, we must safeguard our communities and prevent further damage. It is time for the United States to return to leading by example by passing reforms such as the Green New Deal and invest further in our Climate Civilian Corps.

As a survivor of Hurricane Ike, Hurricane Harvey and the devastating 2021 Texas power crisis, I have experienced the devastation of the climate crisis firsthand. I can tell you this is NOT some far-off doomsday scenario. But I can promise you that the reforms proposed here will protect what we already have and allow us to envision a sunnier future.

It is time to focus on community-powered tech development while training our workforce to lead a green tech transition. To this end, we need leaders willing to challenge oligarchs who are currently invested in subsidizing oil over subsidizing community development towards a green transition.

9) Polling underscores that one chief concern of California voters in the 2026 midterm elections is the issue of threats to democracy. What do you believe are the greatest threats to American democracy? How would you, and how should Congress, protect against these? (100 words max)

Donald Trump is the greatest threat to our democracy. I support impeaching and convicting the president and his administration for their flagrant disregard for the Constitution as well as their other allegedly criminal acts. Because of my resolve on this, unlike that of our current House leadership, this campaign is also endorsed by Courage for Democracy.

10) Do you support a ban or restriction on congressional lawmakers and their families buying or selling individual stocks? Why or why not? And what would you propose to ensure lawmakers aren’t using their positions to engage in insider trading? (100 words max)

Yes, because our policy decisions directly affect global events and markets that are easily predicted by representatives that stand to currently turn a profit. Our self-interest should not be guiding our legislative priorities.

11) By design Congress is supposed to serve as a check on the executive branch through budgetary, legislative and oversight powers. Do you believe that Congress has fulfilled that obligation in recent years? Why or why not? Should Congress do more to hold the president accountable? Explain. (150 words max)

No, Congress has not fulfilled that obligation, because there is an active effort from Republican legislators to curry favor from the Republican president. The body is also very much acting in the service of corporate interests who dictate what several branches of the government are doing, playing the branches like a symphony rather than allowing them to check each other.

Congress has a duty to hold the president accountable through the war powers resolution, impeachment and congressional appropriations, which it has seldom done as of late.

12) A recent San Diego Union-Tribune poll found voters overwhelmingly disapprove of the job Congress is doing, by higher margins than they disapprove of the job Trump is doing. Why do you think this is? How can Congress win back voters’ hope and trust, and what would you personally do to achieve this? (150 words max)

Congress members serve themselves and their relationships with corporate interests, not us. To gain trust back, they need to ban insider trading and pass legislation reforming campaign finance while prioritizing policies that will put more money back in Americans’ pockets while putting us at the forefront of innovation, health and education.

We must restore people’s economic freedom and dignity and make San Diego more affordable. It is time that the top 1% paid their fair share to the workers who have ensured their success.

Instead of using our taxes to pay for endless wars and genocide abroad, it is time that Congress worked for the people it is meant to represent. These funds can be used to fund the Social Security Expansion Act, federally-funded public transit and equity initiatives. These investments will allow us to build a future where education, health, scientific progress, economic security and opportunity are not privileges but rights shared by all. We deserve the banning of corporate landlords and price-gouging towards a more affordable San Diego.