“We’re going to change direction in this country, people stood up, and this is what happens,” McNerney told supporters at his victory party Tuesday night in San Ramon. “We need honesty, integrity, and accountability, and we are going to hold this administration accountable for what it has done.”

Running on a platform showcasing his expertise in alternative energy, McNerney also capitalized on growing discontent with the Iraq war, and a tide of ethical questions weighing down Republican incumbents to takedown Pombo.

McNerney garnered 53 percent of the vote in California’s 11th district, a patch of subdivisions and rural area spanning parts of Alameda, San Joaquin, Santa Clara and Contra Costa Counties.

“We worked hard, and gathered a lot of support and passion this year,” McNerney told North Gate News Tuesday night.

“The people are ready for this,” McNerney said referring to Democrats’ inroads in regaining the house.

McNerney won decidedly, collecting more than ten thousand votes than his opponent.

Ousting Pombo, a seven-term incumbent and chairman of the powerful House Resources Committee, is a major victory for environmental groups. The Defenders of Wildlife and the Sierra Club spent millions of dollars on advertising targeting the congressman’s environmental record. The strategy proved victorious, as advertising helped to balance the money race, where Pombo out-fundraised his opponent by over $3 million.

Ethical red-flags stemming from $32,000 he accepted from convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff, worked in tandem with the labeling of the congressman as an “eco-thug” by the Sierra Club to unseat Pombo, whose family has been in Tracy for generations.

Pombo could not be reached for comment on election night