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Posts Tagged ‘Jose Solorio’

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Candidate Filing Closes: Jose Solorio & Arianna Barrios Unopposed in Rancho Santiago Community College District

Posted by Chris Nguyen on August 10, 2012

Jose Solorio

Jose Solorio

Arianna Barrios

Arianna Barrios

The candidate filing period has closed, and there are two unopposed candidates for Rancho Santiago Community College District.  Assemblyman Jose Solorio (D-Santa Ana) is unopposed in his bid for Trustee Area 1 (candidate filing will not be extended there as the area has no eligible incumbent) while Appointed Rancho Santiago Community College District Trustee Arianna Barrios (NPP-Orange) will be unopposed for her bid for a full term in Area 7.

Greta Rice (D-Orange) had pulled papers to run against Barrios but did not return them by the close of filing.  No one pulled papers against Solorio at any time.

Neither race will appear on the ballot since there’s only one candidate (unless 50 voters of the respective trustee areas file a petition demanding an election with only one candidate on the ballot).

Posted in Rancho Santiago Community College District | Tagged: , | Leave a Comment »

Redistricting Put Chapel and McLoughlin in Same RSCCD Seat; Alvarez Joins Slugfest

Posted by Chris Nguyen on August 2, 2012

Mark McLaughlin, David Chapel, Claudia Alvarez

Mark McLaughlin, David Chapel, and Claudia Alvarez

You may have seen Emami’s Twitter-style post, so here’s a more in-depth examination of the race for Rancho Santiago Community College District Board, Trustee Area 5.

In what may be the most awesome November slugfest not involving Republicans, Santa Ana Mayor Pro Tem Claudia Alvarez, has pulled papers to run for the RSCCD Trustee Area 5.   There are already two incumbents in the seat, as the RSCCD board recently switched from a multi-member three-area at-large election system to a vote-by-area system.  When they drew the lines for Area 5, they put three incumbents into Area 5, but Brian Conley chose to retire in June, leaving David Chapel and Mark McLoughlin to duke it out in November.

Now, we have a three-way slugfest with RSCCD Trustee Chapel (NPP), RSCCD Vice President McLoughlin (D), and Santa Ana Mayor Pro Tem Alvarez (D).  City council members have typically been able to defeat sitting school board members for school board seats (for example, Costa Mesa Councilwoman Katrina Foley unseated Newport-Mesa Unified School District Trustee Michael Collier 55%-45% in 2010).  Here, Alvarez is a sitting Councilwoman running for a single college board seat where two trustees are already in the race.

Alvarez has several advantages:

  • City Councilmembers’ general ability to unseat school board members
  • The pro-incumbent vote is split between Chapel and McLoughlin
  • She is the sole woman
  • She is the sole Latina
  • She has higher name ID, due to her Council seat and her 2006 bid for Assembly (she lost the primary to Jose Solorio, who incidentally is now running for RSCCD Trustee Area 1)
  • She has the largest warchest

This will be a tall order for Chapel to beat both McLaughlin and Alvarez.  It will be a similarly tall order for McLaughlin to beat both Chapel and Alvarez.  Of the three, Alvarez has the clearest path to the RSCCD victory in November.

For those wondering, Area 5 is:

  • Fountain Valley north of Edinger Avenue
  • Garden Grove south of Garden Grove Boulevard between Harbor Boulevard and Euclid Street
  • Santa Ana north of 17th Street and west of Santiago Street
  • Santa Ana between Euclid Street and the Santa Ana River
  • Santa Ana north of Civic Center Drive between Bristol Street and Flower Street

For visual learners, it’s the yellow portion on this map:

Posted in Costa Mesa, Newport-Mesa Unified School District, Rancho Santiago Community College District, Santa Ana | Tagged: , , , , , , | 2 Comments »

Assemblyman Jose Solorio Pulls Papers for Rancho Santiago Community College District

Posted by Chris Nguyen on July 16, 2012

According to the Orange County Registrar of Voters, Assemblyman Jose Solorio (D-Santa Ana) has pulled papers for the Rancho Santiago Community College District Trustee Area 1.  (There is no incumbent, as the RSCCD board recently switched from a multi-member three-area at-large election system to a vote-by-area system, but drew three incumbents into Area 5, with Brian Conley choosing to retire in June, leaving David Chapel and Mark McLoughlin to duke it out in Area 5.)

Solorio had been rumored for months to be interested in the RSCCD seat after the Bernie Madoff of California Democrats, Kinde Durkee, stole $700,000+ from Solorio, putting an end to his bid to challenge Supervisor Janet Nguyen (R-Garden Grove).  Between his Assembly campaign committee and a ballot measure committee, Solorio has over $200,000 cash on hand.

Due to the fact there are no contribution limits for the college board seat in Rancho Santiago, Solorio can transfer the entire $200,000 to his RSCCD account without raising another penny.

Santa Ana LULAC President Zeke Hernandez is rumored to be Solorio’s top challenger.

Will union anger at Solorio’s endorsement of Tom Daly for Assembly result in enormous contributions to Hernandez for college board?  (Remember, there are no contribution limits, so they can give all the money to Hernandez instead of doing an IE.)

Trustee Area 1’s eastern border follows Main Street in Santa Ana from 17th Street down to the 55 Freeway.  Its southern border is the Santa Ana city limit.  Its far northern border is 17th Street.  Its western border is a zig-zag involving Flower Street from 17th Street to 1st Street, Bristol Street from 1st Street to St. Andrew Place, Rene Drive from St. Andrew Place to Warner Avenue, and roughly Raitt Street from Warner Avenue to the city limit.

Posted in 69th Assembly District, Rancho Santiago Community College District | Tagged: , , , , , , | 2 Comments »

Secretary of State’s Incorrect Filing Extension Can Only Be Reversed by Court Order

Posted by Chris Nguyen on March 13, 2012

The Secretary of State is to blame for the incorrect filing extension.
While Emami was chasing his tail trying to get an explanation from the Orange County Registrar of Voters for why AD-69 and AD-72 had candidate filing extended (as he described in this grammatically-flawed post incorrectly blaming the Registrar), I went to the source of the people actually responsible for the filing extension: the Secretary of State.  They were the ones who instructed the county registrars to extend filing on various races.  The Secretary of State had sent this memo to the county registrars (h/t to Capitol Alert for that memo, which was oddly placed inside a post about Elizabeth Emken getting the CRP endorsement).

After contacting friends in Sacramento, they inform me that once the filing period extension has been announced, the Secretary of State cannot reverse the decision, as only a judge with a court order can shut down filing.  Only a candidate who has already completed filing has standing to launch the lawsuit necessary to get the court order (in other words only Tom Daly, Michele Martinez, Julio Perez, or Paco Barragan can sue to end the AD-69 filing extension, and only Troy Edgar, Long Pham, Travis Allen, Joe Dovinh, or Albert Ayala can sue to end the AD-72 filing extension).  If they launched the lawsuit, they’d also have to show that they were harmed by the filing extension (i.e. another candidate filed, but no new person has pulled papers in either AD-69 or AD-72 as of this morning).

Even if a candidate launched the suit, they’d have to be willing to suffer the negative press and the hits from their opponents accusing them of “anti-democratic” action by trying to prevent people from joining the race.

Then in the lawsuit itself, the candidate would then face off against bureaucrats in the Secretary of State’s office who would show some bizarrely liberal interpretation of law justifying the extension.  Then, the plaintiff candidate would have to convince the judge that there was enough damage done to themselves and the electoral process from having additional candidates that warranted an injunction (99% chance the judge would not issue an injunction to reduce the number of candidates).

The Orange County Registrar of Voters also sent this out to their e-mail list yesterday:

Explanation for Contest Extensions

March 12, 2012 – Statewide 53 Congressional, Senate and Assembly contests were extended by the Secretary of State to March 14th at 5:00 p.m.  This takes place in races “for which no eligible incumbent is seeking reelection”. The key is eligible – according to the Secretary of State they have determined that some districts that appear to lack an incumbent have eligible candidates (who currently hold office) that could have moved into the district, causing an incumbency.  Redistricting has contributed to this and In Orange County there are two Assembly Districts (69th and 72nd) that fall into this category.

So it seems that the Secretary of State’s office was encouraging carpetbagging.

  • Despite Jose Solorio being termed out and the vast majority of AD-69 being his district, the justification for extending AD-69 is because tiny pieces of Anaheim and Orange from Chris Norby’s old district were included in the new AD-69, candidate filing was extended since Chris Norby chose to run for his hometown’s AD-65 instead of carpetbagging into AD-69.
  • Despite Jim Silva being termed out and the only sitting Assembly Member in the boundaries of AD-72, the justification for extending AD-72 is because is because portions of Allan Mansoor’s old district were included in the new AD-72, candidate filing was extended since Allan Mansoor chose to run for his hometown’s AD-74 instead of carpetbagging into AD-72.

Wow.  Sometimes the Secretary of State can make even the most cynical people more cynical.

(In the interest of full disclosure, I do work in the office of Assemblyman Chris Norby for my day job.  However, I would oppose him carpetbagging into AD-69 even if I did not work for him.)

Posted in 69th Assembly District, 72nd Assembly District | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments »

Board of Supervisors: Two Crazy Races on the Docket

Posted by Chris Nguyen on March 10, 2012

Todd Spitzer, Deborah Pauly, Janet Nguyen, and Steve Rocco

3rd District Candidates Todd Spitzer and Deborah Pauly, 1st District Supervisor Janet Nguyen, and 1st District Challenger Steve Rocco

I’m not sure which supervisorial race will be more entertaining this June: Todd Spitzer vs. Deborah Pauly or Janet Nguyen vs. Steve Rocco.  The Spitzer-Pauly race in the Third District will have some great fireworks, as Spitzer and Pauly are two of Orange County’s most aggressive campaigners while the Nguyen-Rocco race in the First District will simply be entertaining by virtue of Steve Rocco.

Third Supervisorial District

Incumbent Supervisor Bill Campbell is termed out after nearly ten years on the Board of Supervisors; he was elected in a 2003 special election (indeed, this was Orange County’s first-ever Supervisorial vacancy special election, as all previous vacancies had been filled by gubernatorial appointment) to replace Todd Spitzer who had vacated the seat to enter the State Assembly.

The candidates (as expected) are:

Former Assemblyman and former Third District Supervisor Todd Spitzer is running to for his old job.   Originally slated to battle former Assemblyman Chuck DeVore for the seat, DeVore moved to Texas late last year.  With DeVore out, Villa Park Councilwoman Deborah Pauly stepped into the race.  Fireworks have sparked every time these two candidates have met in debates throughout the Third District.  The mail should be fun to read.  Spitzer definitely has the cash advantage in this race, as I posted here.  For other coverage of the race, you can view the, um, rather, um slanted perspective that HBK provides.

First Supervisorial District

The candidates are:

After Kinde Durkee wiped out Democrat Assemblyman Jose Solorio and Democrat Senator Lou Correa’s warchests, Supervisor Janet Nguyen was left with a warchest that dwarfed those of Solorio and Correa combined.  Solorio and Correa would have had to spend an enormous sum to unseat Nguyen.

With the fact that most of his money was gone and that Assemblymembers don’t have a very good track record of unseating incumbent Supervisors (see Guy Houston or Audra Strickland), Solorio opted to avoid a losing battle with Nguyen.

Faced with the fact that most of his money was gone, Correa opted to wait.  He could be hoping that Nguyen will go for his Senate seat in 2014 when he’s termed out, which will free up the First Supervisorial District seat for a 2015 special election, much like Correa did when he vacated this Supervisorial seat in 2006 causing a 2007 Supervisorial special election that Nguyen won.

So now we’re left with, um, what’s the polite way to put it, um, colorful former Orange Unified School District Trustee Steve Rocco.  I could also call him convicted ketchup thief Steve Rocco.  Perhaps, Rocco’s previous election opponents can form a bipartisan coalition to give Nguyen advice on beating Rocco (or at least on how to keep Rocco from stealing her condiments), though I suspect the advice will be along the lines of: don’t steal mustard:

  • OUSD Trustee Rick Ledesma (R), who defeated Rocco 72%-28% in November 2010
  • Former OC Public Administrator John Williams (R), who defeated Rocco 58%-11% in a four-way race in June 2010
  • Santa Ana City Councilman Carlos Bustamante (R), who defeated Rocco 50%-18% in a four-way race in November 2008
  • Rancho Santiago Community College District Trustee John Hanna (D), who defeated Rocco 74%-26% in November 2006 and 71%-29% in November 2002
  • Santa Ana Mayor Miguel Pulido (D), who defeated Rocco 71%-12% in a three-way race in November 2000

(Surprisingly, Rocco did not run for Governor in the 2003 recall.)

Don’t ask OC Park Ranger Phil Martinez, though, as he’s the one who lost 54%-46% to Rocco in the OUSD race in November 2004.

Will Rocco accuse Supervisor Nguyen of being part of “The Partnership” which Rocco previously claimed was the secret group ruling the United States?  Will Rocco accuse Supervisor Nguyen of trying to have him killed, similar to the accusation he leveled at “The Partnership,” Chapman University President Jim Doti, and Chapman Professor Fred Smoller?

Please read the Wikipedia article on Steve Rocco for your own entertainment.

(For the record, I am not related to Supervisor Nguyen. The last name Nguyen is held by 36% of Vietnamese people.)

Posted in 1st Supervisorial District, 3rd Supervisorial District | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments »

Total Durkee Embezzlement: $1.4-$1.7 Million from Correa & Solorio; Combined Cash on Hand Far Less Than Nguyen

Posted by Chris Nguyen on February 2, 2012

It had been well-reported in the Fall that Kinde Durkee is charged with embezzling “hundreds of thousands of dollars” from Senator Lou Correa and over $677,000 from Assemblyman Jose Solorio.  Well, now we know the totals: over $1.7 million between the two.

According to Solorio’s campaign finance filings from his four accounts, he lost $721,176, and another $154,053 is being held by the LA Superior Court pending resolution of the Durkee case.  This means Solorio’s losses could be as much as $875,229.  This leaves Solorio with $124,820 cash on hand.  However, he has $13,489 in unpaid bills, which leaves him with just $111,331.

From Correa’s campaign finance filings from his two accounts, he lost $795,739, and another $68,744 is being held by the LA Superior Court pending resolution of the Durkee case.  This means Correa’s losses could be as much as $864,483.  This leaves Correa with $52,683 cash on hand.  However, he has $2,346 in unpaid bills, which leaves him with $50,337. (He did set up a third account, which was a legal defense fund, in September after Durkee was charged, but that account only has a $200 personal loan from Correa).

The unintentional big winner in this is Supervisor Janet Nguyen.  Correa and Solorio are Nguyen’s two most formidable potential challengers.

Nguyen has $282,577 cash on hand and $11,826 in unpaid bills, leaving her with $270,751.  Solorio and Correa have $161,668 combined.

For visual learners:

Embezzled Held By
Court		 Cash on
Hand		 Unpaid
Bills
Solorio $721,176 $154,053 $124,820 $13,489
Correa $795,739 $68,744 $52,683 $2,346
Nguyen $0 $0 $282,577 $11,826

For the record, I am not related to Supervisor Nguyen. The last name Nguyen is held by 36% of Vietnamese people.

Posted in 1st Supervisorial District, 34th Senate District, Fundraising | Tagged: , , , | 6 Comments »

Steve Rocco is Back

Posted by Former Blogger Chris Emami on January 30, 2012

Steve Rocco is back in the public eye having pulled papers to run against Supervisor Janet Nguyen in the 1st Supervisorial District. Rocco, as you may remember was elected to the Orange Unified School District back in 2004 and has since run for Santa Ana City Council, Orange County Public Administrator/Guardian, and now Orange County Supervisor.

Janet Nguyen will coast to victory if he is the only opponent for her in this election but rumors are swirling that either Jose Solorio or possibly Lou Correa will jump into this race. Hopefully the GOP will get behind her quickly and throw a lot of support her way as this seat does have a registration advantage for the Democrats.

Filing hasn’t even opened yet so we will have to wait and see who ends up being in the field after it is finalized. Fundraising will also be interesting with Kindee Durkee helping out numerous Republican candidates by draining numerous Democrats of their left over money, including I believe Solorio and Correa.

Posted in 1st Supervisorial District | Tagged: , , , | 13 Comments »

New Senate Districts Weaken Statewide GOP, Strengthens OC GOP

Posted by Chris Nguyen on January 30, 2012

On Friday, the California Supreme Court ruled that this year’s elections will go with the maps created by the Citizen’s Redistricting Commission.  This bodes ill for Republicans statewide but could boost the strength of Republicans in Orange County.  Examining the great district-by-district numbers put together by Matt Rexroad, Chandra Sharma, and the rest of the Meridian Pacific team, it appears to me that there are 11 safe Republican districts, 25 safe Democrat districts, and 4 swing districts.

To maintain the status quo, Republicans have to capture all 4 swing seats: the 5th (Sacramento, San Joaquin, and Stanislaus Counties), 27th (LA & Ventura Counties), 31st (Riverside County), and 34th (Orange County).  To reach a 2/3 majority to raise taxes and wreak other havoc on California, Democrats only need to capture half the swing seats.  The 27th is the only one where a sitting Senator (Democrat Fran Pavley) is seeking the seat.  The other three are wide open.

The 5th, 27th, and 31st will all be on the ballot this year.  The 34th will be on the ballot in 2014.  More than 711,000 Californians have signed the petition to put the map on the ballot this November.  Whether the voters overturn the map or retain the map will likely have little effect on these four seats until at least 2016.  Whoever wins the 5th, 27th, and 31st will be able to retain their seats through at least 2016, and any new map would likely have little effect on the 34th, as the shape of that district is heavily controlled by federal Voting Rights Act requirements. Furthermore, Correa keeps the seat until 2014.

No seat is closer than the 34th right here in Orange County.  In the new 34th Senate District, held by termed out Democrat Lou Correa, Democrats hold a 0.6% registration advantage.  (In the old 34th Senate District, where Correa beat Lynn Daucher by 1.4% in 2006 and won re-election over Lucille Kring by 31.6% in 2010, Democrats held a 12% registration advantage.)  The Meridian guys have even dubbed the new 34th district “Open Republican” on their site.

Up for election in 2014, the SD-34 Republican nominee will very likely be either Supervisor Janet Nguyen or the new 72nd District Assemblyman (Tyler Diep or Matt Harper) and the Democrats’ nominee will very likely be either outgoing Assemblyman Jose Solorio or the new 69th District Assemblymember (Paco Barragan, Tom Daly, Michele Martinez, or Julio Perez).  If the new Assemblymembers go for it, they’d have to risk their Assembly seats after just one term in order to run for the Senate.  It would be a safe run for Nguyen and Solorio, as neither of them would be up for election in 2014. (For the record, I am not related to Supervisor Nguyen; 36% of Vietnamese people have the last name Nguyen.)

After 16 years in the hands of the Democrats, SD-34 could return to Republican control, producing the first all-Republican OC delegation to the State Senate since Rob Hurtt lost to Joe Dunn.

The new SD-34 includes:

  • Santa Ana (325,000 people)
  • Garden Grove (171,000 people)
  • 48% of northern Huntington Beach (91,000 people)
  • Westminster (90,000 people)
  • 20% of Central/Eastern Anaheim (68,000 people)
  • 13% of eastern Long Beach (61,000 people)
  • Fountain Valley (55,000 people)
  • Seal Beach (24,000 people)
  • Los Alamitos (11,000 people)
  • Rossmoor (10,000 people)
  • 7% of southwestern Orange (10,000 people)
  • Midway City (8,000 people)

Posted in 34th Senate District | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

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