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Santa Ana's top news & views blog

Category Archives: 2012 Elections

Hart announces he’ll run against Bustamante, as O.C.D.A. considers charges

Posted on by Posted in 2012 Elections, Carlos Bustamante, Charles Hart, Republican Party, Santa Ana 4 Comments

Remember Charles Hart (pictured above, on the left)?  He ran for Mayor of Santa Ana in 2010, and lost, badly, when his Usual Suspect allies turned on him at the last minute.  They ended up voting for Al Amezcua, who got his tail kicked, despite spending a small fortune, by longtime Santa Ana Mayor Miguel Pulido.

Hart has posted an article ripping the Santa Ana City Council, over on the new OC Political blog, because they voted to develop a Climate Action Plan to help improve the environment.

Hart also let slip, at the end of his article, that he is a candidate for the Santa Ana City Council.  Hart lives in Santa Ana’s Ward 3, which is currently represented by Council Member Carlos Bustamante, who used to work for the County of Orange, until allegations of sexual harassment compelled him to resign.  The Voice of OC reported today that Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas is now reviewing the matter.  Bustamante is clearly toast. Continue reading→

Pedroza to run for Area One of the Orange County Board of Education

Posted on by Posted in 2012 Elections, Art Pedroza, Education, Fountain Valley, Garden Grove, Orange County, Santa Ana 11 Comments

I decided today to pull papers for Area One of the Orange County Board of Education.  The only candidate who has thus far qualified for the ballot is Ken Nguyen, who is a member of the Santa Ana Parks And Recreation Commission.  Nguyen appears to be a grandfather and I believe he is a businessman.

Papers have also been pulled by Anita Mathur, who is unknown in local politics, and Robert Hammond, who is also a candidate for the Republican Party of Orange County’s Central Committee.

Hammond is an extreme social conservative who recently dropped out of the running for the 69th Assembly District.  His late departure from that race left the OC GOP without a candidate in that contest, although candidates can file for that seat through tomorrow, Wednesday, at 5 pm.  Hammond appears to be a grandfather too. Continue reading→

Updated: Only one Latino running for the 69th A.D. OC GOP Central Committee

Posted on by Posted in 2012 Elections, Racism, Republican Party, Santa Ana 4 Comments

How pathetic is the Republican Party of Orange County?  Well, they have only one Hispanic candidate running for the Central Committee, in the 69th Assembly District, which is an overwhelmingly Latino district.  And that Hispanic candidate is a Minuteman who loathes her own people.  Here are the candidates: Continue reading→

Hammond enters the race for the O.C. Board of Education’s First Area

Posted on by Posted in 2012 Elections, Education, Elections, Orange County, Republican Party, Robert Hammond, Santa Ana, Tustin Leave a comment

As reported in an earlier post today, Republican Robert Hammond has withdrawn from the race for the 69th Assembly District, according to the OC Political Blog.  He is running instead for the Orange County Board of Education, in the First Area, which is being vacated by the incumbent, Long Pham.

Hammond is an extremist social conservative.  He is anti-immigrant and anti-gay.  He would be very much like former O.C. BOE Trustee Alexandria Coronado, who got the boot the last time she ran, after she made anti-gay comments. Continue reading→

With Republican candidate out, the 69th A.D. is down to Martinez and Daly

Posted on by Posted in 2012 Elections, Anaheim, Democratic Party, Elections, Jose Solorio, Julio Perez, Michele Martinez, Politics, Republican Party, Robert Hammond, Santa Ana 1 Comment

Republican Robert Hammond, a resident of Santa Ana, has withdrawn from the race for the 69th Assembly District, according to the OC Political blog.  There are now four Democrats vying in the open primary, but only two of them have a shot at winning in June. 

Santa Ana Couincil Member Michele Martinez has 13% of the vote, according to a poll conducted by the other leading Democratic candidate, Tom Daly, who currently is the O.C. Clerk-Recorder.  Daly has a quarter of the vote, according to his poll. Continue reading→

Bustamante sex scandal could cost O.C. CEO Tom Mauk his job

Posted on by Posted in 2012 Elections, Carlos Bustamante, Elections, Janet Nguyen, Orange County, Politics, Republican Party, Santa Ana 8 Comments

“The Orange County Board of Supervisors will meet Monday in an emergency closed session to discuss whether they should refer allegations of sexual misconduct against Santa Ana City Councilman Carlos Bustamante to District Attorney Tony Rackauckas for a criminal investigation,” according to the Voice of OC.

My sources report that Orange County CEO Tom Mauk may be hung out to dry as a result of this scandal.  A report by Peter Hughes, director of internal audit, made its way to the supervisors, according to the Voice of OC – and his allegations were stunning. Continue reading→

Santa Ana Parks Commissioner Nguyen running for the OC Board of Education

Posted on by Posted in 2012 Elections, Democratic Party, Education, Elections, Fountain Valley, Garden Grove, Orange County, Politics, Santa Ana, Tustin, Vietnamese 1 Comment

I wrote a post recently bemoaning the lack of Latino candidates for the Orange County’s Board of Education, in the Latino-dominated First District, which is currently represented by Republican Long Pham.  Now there are two other candidates in the race – Santa Ana Parks and Recreation Board Member Ken Nguyen, and an unknown candidate named Anita Mathur.

Nguyen has reportedly been making the rounds to get support for his campaign. I hear that he has met in recent weeks with State Senator Lou Correa and Assemblyman Jose Solorio.  I thought Solorio might be interested in running for the First District, but perhaps not? Continue reading→

Out of district white liberals losing it over Daly’s 69th A.D. poll

Posted on by Posted in 2012 Elections, Anaheim, Democratic Party, Elections, Julio Perez, Michele Martinez, Politics, Santa Ana, Tom Daly 3 Comments

Ultra-liberal O.J. blogger Greg Diamond has publicly questioned the results of a poll recently conducted by Tom Daly’s campaign for the 69th Assembly District, in an Orange Juice blog post, and in comments he left over at the OC Political blog.  Diamond was irked by the poll as it revealed that Diamond’s pick in that race, union hack Julio Perez, is the least popular of the five candidates who are running.

But now we have gotten a hold of the Daly poll press release.  And guess what?  Daly used a reputable pollster, David Binder Research, who has worked for some of the most liberal Democrats in California and elsewhere, including: Continue reading→

Poll shows that Perez & Barragan should drop out of race for the 69th A.D.

Posted on by Posted in 2012 Elections, Anaheim, Democratic Party, Elections, Jose Solorio, Julio Perez, Labor, Michele Martinez, Orange County, Politics, Republican Party, Robert Hammond, Santa Ana, Tom Daly 4 Comments

A new phone poll of voters in the 69th Assembly District, conducted by Democratic candidate Tom Daly’s campaign, shows that newcomers Julio Perez  and Francisco Barragan need to drop out now, or they are going to jeopardize the election of a Latino to represent this heavily Latino district, which is currently represented by Jose Solorio.

Here are the poll results (from the OC Political blog): Continue reading→

Martinez 69th A.D. Fundraiser on March 3, at Don Krotee’s art gallery

Posted on by Posted in 2012 Elections, Democratic Party, Elections, Entertainment, Michele Martinez, Politics Leave a comment

Local Architect and Artist, Don Krotee, Opens his Office/Gallery and Invites you to a showing, reception and open house in support of Councilwoman Michele Martinez, Candidate for the 69th Assembly District.

The reception and open house will be in the tradition of the great City of Santa Ana’s 1st Saturday-of-the-Month Gallery Open House. Continue reading→

Leading 69th A.D. candidate Martinez endorsed by S.A. police managers

Posted on by Posted in 2012 Elections, Democratic Party, Elections, Michele Martinez, Politics, Santa Ana 1 Comment

For Immediate Release: February 28, 2012
Contact: Lupe De La Cruz, Cell: (714) 564-0130

Michele Martinez Receives Endorsement from Key Law Enforcement Leaders

Santa Ana, CA – Santa Ana City Councilwoman Michele Martinez received the endorsement of the Santa Ana Police Management Association (SAPMA) today. The endorsement was announced by Jim Schnabl (Police Commander and Secretary/Treasurer of the SAPMA), on behalf of the association that represents the Command Staff of the Santa Ana Police Department. Continue reading→

69th A.D. candidate Martinez gets bipartisan & Vietnamese support at event

Posted on by Posted in 2012 Elections, Carlos Bustamante, David Benavides, Democratic Party, Elections, Jose Solorio, Little Saigon, Michele Martinez, Miguel Pulido, Republican Party, Santa Ana, Sean Mill, Vietnamese, Vince Sarmiento, Westminster 8 Comments

I expected a good turnout at Santa Ana Council Member Michele Martinez’ fundraising event tonight, which was hosted at the home of Council Member Vince Sarmiento and his wife Eva.  And sure enough, the place was packed – but that was not the entire story.

For one thing, a lot of Republicans were there tonight, including past CRP Vice Chair Mario Rodriguez, who was a high-ranking official in Governor Schwarzenegger’s administration; Break Mayor Ron Garcia, who works with Martinez in NALEO (the National Association of Latino Elected Officials); MWD Trustee Brett Barbre; developer and consultant Steve Sheldon; and Santa Ana Council Member Carlos Bustamante. Continue reading→

Martinez fundraising event tonight, at Sarmiento’s home

Posted on by Posted in 2012 Elections, Democratic Party, Elections, Jose Solorio, Michele Martinez, Politics, Santa Ana, Vince Sarmiento 5 Comments

Santa Ana Council Member Vince Sarmiento, who is widely respected by both Democrats and Republicans, sent out a letter via email yesterday encouraging his supporters to back his colleague, Santa Ana Council Member Michele Martinez, for the 69th Assembly District.  Sarmiento and his wife are hosting a fundraiser for her on Thursday, Feb. 23.  Here is Sarmiento’s eloquent letter:

I am writing to urge you to join my wife and I in supporting Councilwoman Michele Martinez for election to the California Legislature. As a friend and colleague, Councilwoman Martinez has demonstrated that she is the best candidate for the 69th Assembly district. The district is currently represented by Assemblyman Jose Solorio, who is termed-out and has already endorsed Michele for his seat in the Assembly. Continue reading→

Updated: Supervisor Nguyen using her CalOptima seat to raise campaign funds

Posted on by Posted in 2012 Elections, Health and Medical, Janet Nguyen, Orange County, Politics, Santa Ana Leave a comment

UPDATE: Supervisor Janet Nguyen may be up to her old tricks again.  In the past she has used anonymous surrogates to do her dirty work, including buying URLs similar to those used by her political opponents, and redirecting them to nasty sites.  Now an anonymous letter has been sent to the CalOptima board of directors Thursday accuses two board members — Chairman Ed Kacic and Mary Anne Foo — of improprieties, allegations both strongly denied, according to the Voice of OC.  And it turns out that Kacis is only trying to help the community:

Kacic, president of the Irvine Health Foundation, said his organization belongs to the Managed System of Care, a group that includes the CEOs of all Orange County hospitals, the county Health Care Agency, the Veterans Administration, CalOptima, clinics, major medical groups and business interests.

Continue reading→

CA teachers’ union supports higher taxes, child molesters and Julio Perez

Posted on by Posted in 2012 Elections, Democratic Party, Education, Elections, Julio Perez, Michele Martinez, Politics, Santa Ana 1 Comment

Julio Perez – the choice of union hacks

Sixty three year-old LAUSD teacher Mark Berndt has been charged with 23 counts of lewd acts on children.  Berndt allegedly regularly told children they were going to play a “tasting game”, then blindfolded them and in some cases put tape over their mouths. He then fed students a “milky” substance on a spoon and on top of cookies. Later DNA testing confirmed that this substance was indeed Berndt’s own semen.  He also ran cockroaches over the faces and mouths of the children.  Berndt took pictures of these encounters, according to USA Today.

Berndt is going to keep getting his benefits – and he even kept his job back in 1993 when he was first charged with molestation.  And he got a $40K payment so that he would retire.  How did all this happen?  Because of rules that the teachers’ union bartered for – the same union that is now supporting ultra-liberal Democratic Assembly candidate Julio Perez, who is running for the 69th A.D.   Continue reading→