Rep. Devin Nunes of Tulare is appealing to Bay Area conservatives for campaign help vs. Andrew Janz. (AP File Photo)

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Highly respected San Francisco Chronicle political reporter John Wildermuth served up a scoop Monday.

Rep. Devin Nunes is hitting up Bay Area conservatives for campaign donations in the fight to keep his seat against Andrew Janz.

The irony is that in his local campaign ads the Tulare Republican attacks Janz, a Fresno Democrat, for successfully enlisting the support of outsiders — liberals in the Bay Area and Hollywood.

“Bay Area Republicans have become part of a Central Valley congressional race, with GOP Rep. Devin Nunes of Tulare bombarding them with a fund-raising mailer, complete with his full-color picture on the envelope,” Wildermuth writes.

“I have become a constant target of attack for the political establishment, the mainstream media, far-left special interest groups and the extreme left-wing of the Democratic Party. I have a closeup view of the left’s freakish coalition — the powerful public employee unions, radical environmental organizations, myriad far-left groups and other bizarre elements that comprise the left-wing power structure.” — Rep. Devin Nunes’ campaign brochure sent to Bay Area residents

The story also quotes what Nunes says in the mailer: “I have become a constant target of attack for the political establishment, the mainstream media, far-left special interest groups and the extreme left-wing of the Democratic Party. I have a closeup view of the left’s freakish coalition — the powerful public employee unions, radical environmental organizations, myriad far-left groups and other bizarre elements that comprise the left-wing power structure.”

Wildermuth notes that Nunes’ rhetoric isn’t often heard in the Bay Area where “most of the contests tend to pit candidates who are more liberal against those who lean slightly less to the left.”

Nunes Backed By Silicon Valley Conservatives

But Nunes has looked west of the Valley for campaign help before. Conservative executives in Silicon Valley such as Oracle’s Larry Ellison, for example, are backing his campaign with big donations.

“Our campaign proves you can run a well-funded campaign without corporate influence and a first-time politician can outraise the House Intelligence Chairman even without party help.” — Challenger Andrew Janz

According to a September poll from UC Berkeley’s Institute of Governmental Studies, Nunes leads Nunes 53 percent to 45 percent.

In addition, the Oct. 3 Cook Political Report rates the race in California’s 22nd District as “solid Republican.”

Janz Outraises Nunes in Third Quarter

Janz, however, has mounted the biggest challenge that Nunes has faced since first being elected to the House in 2002.

On Monday, the latest Federal Election Commission filings showed that the Janz campaign outraised Nunes by nearly $1.2 million in the third quarter of the election cycle. The FEC filings also showed that the Nunes campaign had outspent the Janz campaign during the quarter.

“Our campaign proves you can run a well-funded campaign without corporate influence and a first-time politician can outraise the House Intelligence Chairman even without party help,” Janz said in a statement.

You can read The Chronicle’s story, “Conservative, Central Valley Rep. Devin Nunes seeks money in Bay Area,” at this link.