French President Emmanuel Macron addresses a joint meeting of the US Congress in the House Chamber with US Vice President Mike Pence and Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, at the US Capitol on Wednesday in Washington, DC. Photo: VCG

US congressman Raul Ruiz, a California Democrat, is facing a challenge for his seat by a Republican businessman named - wait for it - Raul Ruiz.

The 47-year-old representative has handily won re-election every two years since entering Congress in 2013.

But the 2020 race might erase, or at least complicate.

On Thursday his largely unknown challenger, who was homeless for a time, according to his website, released a campaign launch video that identifies him as "the Right Raul Ruiz for Congress."

In his bio the challenger writes that congressman Ruiz and "radical liberals want to use handouts to keep people dependent on the government and rob them of their shot at the American Dream."

AFP