Rep. Mike Garcia, R-Calif., conceded his reelection to George Whitesides (Democrat) on Monday. He is the only Republican who has served multiple terms in Congress to lose their reelection bids for 2024.

Why it matters : Garcia’s defeat is a bright spot in a bleak campaign cycle for Democrats.

The party will fall short in regaining the House, despite losing both the White House to the Republicans and the Senate.

In an email statement sent on Monday, Garcia stated that he had “spoken with George Whitesides” this evening and congratulated him.

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The California Republican said, “I will make sure that he and his team receive all open casework packages from constituents.”

Zoom in: Garcia is a frequent target for Democrats because his district in Los Angeles voted for President Biden in 2020, and he won it by over 12 percentage points.

Garcia, who was first elected in May 2020 in a special election against Democrat state Assemblywoman Christy Smith (now a member of the Senate), defeated Smith again in November 2020 and 2022.

Whitesides was hailed by Democrats as their most promising recruit for the 2024 cycle. He is a former NASA Chief of Staff and Virgin Galactic CEO.

Zoom out: With Garcia’s defeat, five Republican incumbents have been defeated in reelection. These include Reps. Marc Molinaro and Brandon Williams of New York State (both Republicans), Anthony D’Esposito of New York (also a Republican), and Lori Chavez DeRemer (R) from Oregon. All were first elected to Congress in 2022.

So far, three House Democrats have failed to win re-election: Reps. Susan Wild and Matt Cartwright from Pennsylvania; Yadira Caravéo (D) of Colorado.

Several California races remain undecided, including the 13th district where Rep. John Duarte, (R-Calif. ), and Democrat Adam Gray, are neck-and -neck.