In 2003, Congress authorized the construction of a visitor center for the Vietnam Memorial to help provide information and educate the public about the memorial and the Vietnam War.

This race was considered to be the only potentially competitive House contest in California; redistricting after the 2000 census gave most of the state's 53 congresspersons safe districts. Cardoza defeated Monteith 51 percent to 43 percent. He first won election to Congress after defeating Congressman Gary Condit in the March 2002 Democratic Party primary election.

Cardoza (born March 31 1959) was the U. The district took in a large swath of the Central Valley from Stockton to Fresno. On October 20 2011 he announced he would retire from Congress at the end of 2012.