Kevin Lincoln is the Last, Last, Great Black Hope for the Republican House of Representatives

I wrote a short article about Charlotte Bergmann in Memphis, that I believed was the last Black wish for a Republican to win a seat in your house of Reps in 2026 Today Home has 4 Black members out of 219 All four aren’t competing reelection for various reasons. 3 took a chance on running for higher workplace. One was gerrymandered out of his risk-free seat and chose not to run against a white incumbent.

Has the Republican Politician Event Sabotaged Its Last Great Black Wish For the House of Reps?|by William Spivey|The Polis|Jul, 2026|Tool

Charlotte Bergmann had been running for Congress considering that 2010 Charlotte Bergmann is one of the most persistent Black Republican figures in modern Tennessee politics. This Memphis lobbyist has invested more than a decade attempting to become the GOP candidate in one of one of the most greatly Autonomous, majority‑Black areas in the country. Her political identification is built around 2 columns:

1. Black Republican representation in a district where the GOP has almost no institutional existence, and

2. Community‑based outreach framed around entrepreneurship, faith, and conservative social values.

Bergmann’s earliest political and public work came through Memphis’s Black church networks. She positioned herself as a conservative voice within majority‑Black parishes, highlighting:

For years, Bergmann was one of the only Black Republicans consistently noticeable in Memphis. She:

• organized Republican meet‑ups in majority‑Black neighborhoods

• hired Black traditionalists to neighborhood GOP occasions

• served as a bridge in between the Shelby County GOP and Black civic teams

• mounted her candidacy as evidence that the GOP can complete in Black city districts

This made her a symbolic number for Tennessee Republicans, although she never came close to winning. Bergmann regularly discussed:

Her messaging straightened with nationwide Republican motifs but was customized to Memphis’s particular public‑safety concerns. Charlotte Bergmann is just one of the most consistent congressional candidates in Tennessee background. She has actually run 8 times for the U.S. Residence in TN 9 That seat was just one of the safest Democratic seats in the country, and Bergmann frequently ran unopposed in Republican primaries.

For years, Black Republicans were the only ones happy to run in TN 9 due to the fact that they recognized the District’s demographics and saw value in representing traditional Black citizens also in a shedding cause. White Republicans avoided since the seat was unwinnable.

But once the Area was redrawn. When Memphis’s Black voters were cracked and submerged right into a majority‑white, majority‑Republican body politic. The race instantly ended up being winnable for the first time in contemporary background. And the minute winning became feasible, white Republican men swamped in.

Not because they had been serving Memphis. Not since they had constructed relationships in the city. Not because they had any type of background with the Area’s Black neighborhoods. They got in since the map lastly made success mathematically probable. In the newly created District, Charlotte Bergmann did not prosper. She completed fourth in a four‑candidate field and was not affordable in any type of area.

I believed that was it for Black Republicans, yet Kevin Lincoln emerged from The golden state’s statewide jungle main system. Kevin Lincoln is an American politician, priest, Marine Corps professional, and previous mayor of Stockton, California. He defeated Autonomous incumbent Michael Tubbs in the 2020 election and served one term prior to choosing not to run again in 2024 Lincoln was:

• Birthed and raised in Stockton, California.

• Mommy: Mexican American; Dad: African American.

• Matured in an army family and was associated with youth outreach and community service from a young age.

Lincoln joined the united state Marine Corps in 2001 and was later on assigned to Marine One, the presidential helicopter system, during the George W. Bush administration.

After leaving the Militaries, he operated in Silicon Valley’s personal protection market, handling huge budget plans and team. He later on ended up being Executive Priest at LifeSong Church in Stockton.

During his term, Lincoln highlighted:

• Public safety and security (violent criminal offense lowered, including murders)

• Homelessness services

• Young people and labor force programs

• Monetary obligation

When it comes to his political background, Lincoln:

The brand-new CA 13 is not a traditional Republican garrison. It’s a majority‑Hispanic, economically stressed, agriculture‑centered swing area where a Republican candidate need to exceed the national celebration’s brand to win.

Lincoln is running as the Republican opposition against Autonomous incumbent Adam Gray, having actually progressed from the June 2, 2026 top‑two main.

His project is mounted around:

• Opposition to DEI mandates

• Resistance to transgender bathroom policies

• Resistance to gender‑affirming care for minors

These issues appear plainly on his project web site and specify his cultural‑politics messaging. This placements him as a culture‑war traditional in a district where nationwide Republicans think a solid identity message can stimulate country and rural voters.

Lincoln has actually secured high‑level Republican endorsements, including:

These recommendations signal that national GOP management sights CA 13 as a concern flip possibility and Lincoln as their recommended candidate.

Like Jules Winfield (Samuel L. Jackson) in Pulp Fiction, I tried “genuine tough” to discover a way to support Lincoln. I believe the Republican politician Celebration requires a minimum of one Black voice in the House of Representatives that would hopefully speak out when they pursue racist policies. Lincoln’s anti-DEI stance suggests he isn’t trying to find an equivalent playing field for the majority of his constituents. His major plans seem to focus on specifying whom to dislike as opposed to on just how to boost life in the 13 th Area.

Kevin Lincoln is currently routing in every publicly offered forecast for the 2026 basic political election in California’s 13 th Congressional District.

• Choice Workdesk HQ forecast: Lincoln has a 9 % possibility of winning, while Democrat Adam Gray has a ~ 90 % chance

• Pollsmax projection: Gray has a 99 1 % opportunity of winning, Lincoln 0. 9 %. Projected vote share: 60 4 % Gray– 39 6 % Lincoln. Forecasted margin: D + 20 8

• PollingSource: No public surveys in the last 90 days, but specialist rankings categorize the race as Lean Autonomous, implying Democrats are favored however the race is not entirely out of reach.

I truly thought that some excellent could have been accomplished with at the very least one Black participant of your home, yet Lincoln isn’t that individual. The surveys suggest my assistance from across the nation wouldn’t have actually helped a lot. Lincoln was the last, last excellent Black expect Republican politician Home participants, and after the midterm elections, there will likely be none.