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The November General Election in Orange County comes as two corruption scandals are unfolding – with FBI agents recently raiding OC Supervisor Andrew Do’s house in the missing COVID money case.
It comes after Do’s office contracted with a nonprofit to feed seniors, but county attorneys allege the Viet America Society could not account for at least $10 million in federal COVID relief money and misspent that money to buy houses, including one for the supervisor’s daughter.
In Anaheim, watchdogs and activists continue demanding reforms and increased transparency in the fallout of a federal corruption probe that surfaced in 2022 – one that saw the collapse of the Angel Stadium deal and investigations into the powerful Disneyland resort interests in town.
Federal agents alleged former Mayor Harry Sidhu tried ramming through the stadium sale for $1 million in campaign support – something he later pleaded guilty to lying to federal investigators about.
The upcoming election also comes as cities throughout Orange County are considering raising taxes because officials are grappling with rocky budgets.
Here’s a rundown of some of the most critical races. We’ll be updating this voter guide as election season marches on.
Orange County Supervisor Andrew Do is currently facing calls to resign in his final days of office after the FBI raided his house in late August and county leaders sued a nonprofit he contracted with, alleging they misspent over $10 million in taxpayer funds and bought a house for his daughter.
Both candidates running to replace him promise transparency reforms and a new era for the first district after ten years under Do.
State Senator Janet Nguyen (R-Huntington Beach), who used to employ Do as her chief of staff before a falling out years ago, is running to reclaim a seat she once held on the board in 2014.
Nguyen is most remembered for her dramatic changes to CalOptima, the county’s public health plan for the poor, which faced a federal audit while she sat on the board that found the agency failed to properly grant medication to seniors.
[Read: Nguyen Harshly Criticized by Colleagues Over CalOptima Audit]
Cypress City Councilwoman Frances Marquez is running against Nguyen, arguing the district needs a Democrat for the first time in over a decade to bring in a slate of reforms like an independent ethics commission and a new office to review contracts.
Marquez has frequently been a figure of controversy in her home city, having been censured twice by her colleagues on the city council who she’s currently suing, alleging they harassed her when she supported the city’s shift to voting districts.
[Read: Cypress City Councilwoman Sues Colleagues, Alleging Harassment After Voting Rights Lawsuit]
Voters in a host of OC cities will decide this November if they want to pay more in sales taxes to help bail their cities out of multi-million dollar budget deficits.
These sales tax increase ballot measures are coming as officials warn of poor fiscal outlooks that could decimate public services as spending on public safety continues to outpace revenues.
[Read: Voters Across OC Are Considering Tax Increases This Year]
City of Orange
Voters in Orange will consider a 0.5% sales tax increase that – if approved – would generate $20 million annually and sunset in 10 years.
Officials decided to add the measure to the ballot after city staff projected a $19 million dollar budget deficit earlier this year.
Through a series of cuts and new revenue streams, officials shrunk the deficit to $6.7 million.
The sales tax rate in Orange would go from 7.75% to 8.25% if voters approve the tax increase.
Buena Park
Buena Park voters will decide if they want to approve a 1% sales tax increase after officials raised concerns about potential cuts to essential services.
[Read: Buena Park Leaders Put Sales Tax Hike on November Ballot]
The ballot measure comes after a report from a consulting firm – hired by the city manager’s office – said that Buena Park Police Department is severely understaffed and recommended hiring 15 sworn officers, which would cost taxpayers nearly $6 million.
If approved, the sales tax rate in Buena Park would go from 7.75% to 8.75% – – the second highest rate in the county – and would bring in roughly $20 million in funds annually.
La Habra
Voters in La Habra will decide if they want an additional 0.5% sales tax increase after officials cut and deferred over $6 million in spending to balance their fiscal year budget.
[Read: La Habra Voters to Decide on Sales Tax Increase in November]
Their decision came after the annual cost for the city to contract with Los Angeles County for fire services shot up by millions of dollars.
If approved, the sales tax rate in La Habra would increase to 8.75%.
Seal Beach
Seal Beach voters will decide on a 1% sales tax increase as their city faces a $6 million budget deficit.
[Read: Seal Beach Voters to Decide on Sales Tax Increase to Curb $6 Million Deficit]
If approved, it would put the city’s sales tax at 9.25% and is expected generate $3 million annually – only half of the city’s current deficit.
It would also put it in OC’s highest sales tax bracket alongside Los Alamitos, Santa Ana and Westminster.
San Clemente
San Clemente officials are asking voters to consider a 0.5% sales tax increase to help fund efforts to replenish the sand on their beaches – something officials have long been battling in the iconic coastal town.
[Read: San Clemente Needs More Money For Sand]
If approved, the measure would generate $7 million annually in revenue that would be reserved for sand replenishment efforts only and would bump the local sales tax rate from 7.75% to 8.25%.
In Anaheim, voters will be deciding three council seats in a city grappling with the aftermath of Orange County’s largest corruption scandal in recent history – one in which the former mayor pleaded guilty to lying to federal investigators about trying to ram through the Angel Stadium sale for campaign support.
FBI agents and independent investigators have concluded what many residents have long suspected: Disneyland resort interests exert outsized influence on city policymaking.
Activists and watchdogs have long been critical of the millions of dollars Disneyland resort interests spend boosting candidates – concerns echoed in the city’s independent investigation.
[Read: Anaheim’s Own Look at City Hall Finds Disneyland Resort Businesses Improperly Steer Policymaking]
In what could be the first time in years, Disney’s chief local political spending vehicle, Support Our Anaheim Resort (SOAR) political action committee, might be sitting out helping city council campaigns through independent expenditures.
Campaign finance records show the PAC has no money on hand as of June 30, the latest available data.
Before that, the resort friendly group spent nearly $50,000 to help Councilwoman Natalie Rubalcava successfully defend her seat in a recall election.
SOAR also gave $30,000 to the Orange County Business Council PAC and nearly $50,000 to the California Hotel and Lodging Association PAC.
West Anaheim’s District 1 – where officials have long grappled with drug use and prostitution on Beach Boulevard – will see a new representative after City Councilman Jose Diaz decided to not run.
Ojaala Ahmad, a former Anaheim Housing and Community Development commissioner, is running against Ryan Balius, chairman of the city’s Parks and Recreation Commission.
As of Aug. 22, Ahmad showed no fundraising activity on the city’s financial disclosure repository.
Balius fundraised nearly $19,000 as of June 30, including a $10,000 loan to himself, according to financial disclosures as of June 30 – the latest available data.
In Anaheim’s District 4, which encompasses Disneyland and wrestles with resort traffic, City Councilwoman Norma Campos Kurtz is defending the seat in her first election since being appointed to the spot at the beginning of 2023 when the former representative vacated it after being elected to the State Assembly.
Kurtz, who used to be former Assemblyman Tom Daly’s district director, is running against Francisco Rojas – a navy veteran and aircraft mechanic.
Rojas has publicly criticized Kurtz – who sat on SOAR’s advisory committee – for what he says was a rushed vote on the controversial Disneyland expansion project, one in which the city agreed to privatize public roads.
Kurtz publicly defended the deal as beneficial to the local economy and has raised a little over $12,000 this year as of June 30. The OC Business Council PAC and some hoteliers have directly contributed to her campaign, records show.
Rojas hasn’t disclosed any fundraising activity or campaign finances as of Aug. 26.
Voters in neighboring District 5, which includes Angel Stadium and the Honda Center and struggles with homeless encampments, are guaranteed a fresh face at the city council dais after November’s general election since Councilman Steve Faessel, a resort ally, terms out.
According to Anaheim’s official candidate list, there’s three people running: Anaheim Cultural Heritage Commissioner Kristen Maahs, Disneyland resort employee Cristal Ruiz and attorney Andrew Sarega, who resigned from the La Mirada City Council in May.
Sarega, also a former police officer, has raised the most money so far.
As of June 30, Sarega fundraised $89,000 – a bulk of his money, $58,000, came from a self loan.
Maahs raised just under $12,000, including a $2,400 donation from Faessel
Ruiz hasn’t yet disclosed any fundraising activity.
In Santa Ana, voters will be deciding on the mayor and three council seats in a city where officials agreed to settle a legal claim filed by the former city manager alleging a pressure campaign by elected officials on behalf of the police union to boost former union president Gerry Serrano’s pay and pension.
In the claim that city officials tried to keep secret, the former city manager accuses current Mayor Valerie Amezcua of creating a hostile work environment.
Now, Amezcua – the first woman to serve as mayor in Santa Ana – is looking to defend her seat in November, facing off against current City Councilman Benjamin Vazquez.
In Ward 1, incumbent Thai Viet Phan is running against Julie Tran, who owns beauty boutiques and spas, to represent residents in the western part of the city.
In Ward 3, Incumbent Jessie Lopez is running against lawyer Jeffrey Katz to represent residents in the northern part of the city.
Last year, Lopez successfully defeated a police union-backed recall against her.
In Ward 5, Incumbent Johnathan Ryan Hernandez is running against the chair of the city’s Environmental and Transportation Advisory Commission Mario Alvarado to represent north central part of the city.
Voters in Santa Ana will also decide on a host of ballot measures, including affirming the city’s rent control ordinance, allowing noncitizens the right to vote and making Santa Ana politicians full-time by increasing their $66,000 dollars
Irvine voters are picking at least three new council members and a new mayor after they voted to increase the city council’s size from five to seven members in the switch to district voting.
To read all the candidate statements, click here.
The two prominent candidates running for the mayor’s seat are Councilmembers Larry Agran and Tammy Kim, two Democrats fighting for the top job as Mayor Farrah Khan is termed out.
They’re joined in the race by Finance Commissioner Lee Sun, business owner Ron Scolesdang, retired CPA Wing Chow, automation project manager Felipe Delgado and realtor Akshat Bhatia.
Four of the council’s six other seats are up for the voters as well, with only one featuring a defender.
Councilman Mike Carroll is running for reelection in the city’s Fourth District against Ayn Craciun, an environmental policy advocate who was one of the leading advocates behind establishing the Orange County Power Authority, in which Irvine was a founding member.
On the northern edge of the city, residents are picking a new council member to represent neighborhoods like Northwood Point and Orchard Hills, where residents are waiting on a new nature preserve after the closure of a controversial asphalt plant.
Candidates include Planning Commissioner Michelle Johnson, who drew the city’s current map for district elections, small business owner Jackie Kan, systems engineer Jeff Kitchen, Finance Commissioner Melinda Liu and former Commissioner John Park, who also served as head of the city’s local Republican club.
In the city’s second district, which covers the Great Park and other surrounding neighborhoods, candidates include Transportation Commissioner William Go, Planning Commissioner Parrisa Yazdani, Finance Commissioner Jeff Starke, architect Gang Chen and IT Service Manager Mohamed Kothermydeen.
In the city’s third district that covers the heart of the city in neighborhoods like College Park, The Ranch and Northwood, all three candidates are members of the Community Services Commission – Tom Chomyn, James Mai and Jing Sun.
Republican and former Assemblyman Scott Baugh is running against Democratic State Senator Dave Min for OC’s 47th congressional district seat being vacated by Rep. Katie Porter (D-Irvine).
About of 35% voters registered in the district are Democrats and roughly 35% are Republican. Nearly 24% of voters in the district are registered as having no party preference, according to state data.
Incumbent Republican Michelle Steel is running against Democrat and personal injury attorney Derek Tran in the 45th congressional district.
Steel, a former county supervisor, was first elected to congress in 2020 in a district where 37% voters are registered as Democrat, 33% are registered as Republicans. About 24% have no party preference.
Hosam Elattar is a Voice of OC reporter and corps member with Report for America, a GroundTruth initiative. Contact him at helattar@voiceofoc.org or on Twitter @ElattarHosam.
Spencer Custodio is the civic editor. You can reach him at scustodio@voiceofoc.org. Follow him on Twitter @SpencerCustodio.
Noah Biesiada is a Voice of OC reporter and corps member with Report for America, a GroundTruth initiative. Contact him at nbiesiada@voiceofoc.org or on Twitter @NBiesiada.
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