Santa Ana's top news & views blog

Santa Ana's top news & views blog

Category Archives: Politics

Santa Ana City Council candidates forum set for Sep. 21 at the Delhi Center

Posted on by Posted in 2016 Elections, Politics, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Media Advisory

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 11, 2016

Connie Hamilton, Connect-to-Council, 714-745-1692 (phone/text), connect-to-council@earthlink.net

Peter Katz, Com-Link, 714-429-6236 (phone/text), petekatz9@gmail.com

COLLABORATION BETWEEN LOCAL ORGANIZATIONS TO HOST “AN EVENING WITH THE CANDIDATES,” A FORUM AND DEBATE FOR THE SANTA ANA VOTERS

Santa Ana, CA- Connect-to-Council, Com-Link, NeighborWorks Orange County, Delhi Center and Latino Health Access will collaborate in hosting a candidates’ forum and debate for the Santa Ana voters. This will take place at the Delhi Center on September 21, 2016.

The candidates have been invited to participate in a council candidate forum moderated by Com-Link and then a mayoral candidate debate will immediately follow, moderated by Connect-to-Council. Continue reading→

Council Members Martinez and Sarmiento to host a joint Campaign Office Kick-Off on 9/11

Posted on by Posted in Democratic Party, Michele Martinez, Orange County, Politics, Santa Ana, Vince Sarmiento 1 Comment

Santa Ana Council Members Michele Martinez and Vince Sarmiento are hosting a joint Campaign Office Kick-Off on Sunday, September 11, 2016 at 414 W. 4th St., in Santa Ana, on Sunday, Sep. 11, 2016, at 10 a.m.

Martinez is running for the First Supervisorial District and Sarmiento is running for re-election in Ward 1. Continue reading→

Orange County approves Supervisor Do’s plan to turn a vacant DTSA bus terminal into a homeless shelter

Posted on by Posted in Andrew Do, Crime, homeless, Orange County, Politics, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Homelessness: Orange County Approves Supervisor Andrew Do’s Plan to Turn Bus Terminal into Transitional Homeless Shelter

(Santa Ana, California)— At a special meeting of the Orange County Board of Supervisors, a unanimous board approved Supervisor Andrew Do’s plan to turn the Santa Ana Transit Terminal into a transitional homeless shelter.

“Our community is tired of talk; Orange County wants action,” said Orange County Supervisor Andrew Do, who has made tackling homelessness his primary focus during his eighteen months on the board. “By turning this transit terminal into a homeless shelter, we are creating a safe place to help Orange County’s homeless get off the streets and onto a productive path.” Continue reading→

Vazquez and Alcaraz will host a joint campaign walk kick-off on Sep. 10

Posted on by Posted in 2016 Elections, Ana Urzua Alcaraz, Benjamin Vazquez, Politics, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Benjamin Vazquez, a candidate this year for Mayor of Santa Ana, and Ana Urzua Alcaraz, a candidate for Ward 3 on the Santa Ana City Council, are teaming up for a Campaign Walk Kick-Off on Saturday, Sep. 10, 2016, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., at 1211 N Broadway, in Santa Ana.

Vazquez is a local public school teacher. Alcaraz is a community and health advocate.  Continue reading→

SAUSD School Board candidate Angie Cano to launch her campaign on Sep. 9

Posted on by Posted in Angie Rosario Cano, Education, Politics, Santa Ana, SAUSD 2 Comments

SAUSD School Board candidate Angie Cano is hosting a campaign kickoff on Friday, September 9th at 6:00 p.m. at Dr. Ann Coil’s home, located at 2024 N Victoria Dr., in Santa Ana.

Cano believes that the SAUSD Board members must be community-centered and they must work together to increase academic standards for all Santa Ana students. For more information on Angie Cano for Santa Ana School Board, visit her website: www.votecano.com. Continue reading→

The Santa Ana City Council explains why they think the homeless problem is the County’s fault

Posted on by Posted in Crime, homeless, Michele Martinez, Orange County, Politics, Roman Reyna, Santa Ana, Vince Sarmiento 2 Comments

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 1, 2016

CONTACT: Alma Flores, Communications Manager, City of Santa Ana (714) 647-5200, aflores@santa-ana.org

Mayor Pro Tem Sarmiento along with Councilmembers Martinez and Reyna Seek to Declare Public Health and Safety Crisis Related to Homelessness

Urging County of Orange to Open Former Transit Terminal for Homeless Services

Santa Ana, CA – Facing mounting public health and safety impacts in the Civic Center and throughout Santa Ana, Mayor Pro Tem Vicente Sarmiento, Councilwoman Michele Martinez and Councilmember Roman Reyna will bring forward a resolution before the Santa Ana City Council declaring a public health and safety crisis related to the large concentration of homeless and urging the County of Orange to take immediate action to provide services to the homeless at the Santa Ana Transit Terminal which the County owns and controls. The item will appear on the September 6th Council Agenda for consideration of the full City Council. The resolution also calls for a number of improvements to enhance public health and safety within the Civic Center and for the support of all Orange County cities to adopt a resolution encouraging action by the County of Orange. Continue reading→

Have you registered to vote yet for the November General Election?

Posted on by Posted in 2016 Elections, Elections, Orange County, Politics, Santa Ana Leave a comment

City of Santa Ana, Downtown Orange County

Community: Get Out the Vote Santa Ana – Are you Back to School Ready?

It’s September 1st and most schools are back in session. In addition to having your school supplies in order, please make sure you Register to Vote if you will turn 18 years of age by Election Day.

For college students attending school out of the area, you may either request a vote by mail ballot from the Orange County Registrar of Voters Office or you may register at the address where you will be attending school. Continue reading→

Four challengers for the RSCCD Board of Trustees have the support of their Faculty Assn.

Posted on by Posted in 2016 Elections, Cecilia Aguinaga, Education, Matthew Schauer, Politics, Santa Ana, Thomas Gordon Leave a comment

Faculty Association of Rancho Santiago Community College District

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 1, 2016

Contact: Mark Smith (951) 505-0561

Rancho Santiago Community College District Faculty Endorse Four Candidates for Board of Trustee Seats

ORANGE, CA – The Faculty Association of the Rancho Santiago CCD (FARSCCD) announced today that faculty voted to support Matthew Schauer (Area 1); Thomas Anthony Gordon (Area 3); Cecilia “Ceci” Aguinaga (Area 5) and Rudy Diaz (Area 7).

The vote to endorse the four candidates recommended by the leadership of FARSCCD and the faculty’s Political Action Committee took place over two days with 88% of those casting ballots voting to endorse. Continue reading→

Ana Urzúa Alcaraz is kicking off her campaign for the City Council’s Ward 3 on 9/4

Posted on by Posted in 2016 Elections, Ana Urzua Alcaraz, Angelica Amezcua, Politics, Santa Ana 4 Comments

Santa Ana City Council Ward 3 candidate Ana Urzúa Alcaraz is kicking off her campaign on Sunday, Sep. 4, 2016, from 4 to 7 p.m. at 2801 Waverly St., in Santa Ana.

Ward 3 is currently held by Angie Amezcua, who was accidentally elected four years ago when she ran for the office but did not spend a penny on her campaign and did not campaign. She was the only woman on the ballot and her ballot title, “teacher”, did not hurt. Nor did her familiar-sounding last name. Continue reading→

Santa Ana City Council Ward 3 candidate Solorio to host a fundraiser on 9/28

Posted on by Posted in 2016 Elections, Angelica Amezcua, Jose Solorio, Politics, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Jose Solorio Fundraiser

BIRTHDAY FUNDRAISER AT ANTONELLO’S

Santa Ana City Council Ward 3 candidate Jose Solorio is hosting his annual birthday fundraiser at Antonello Ristorante on Wednesday, September 28, 2016, from 5:30 to 7:30 pm. Antonello Ristorante is located at 3800 South Plaza Drive, in Santa Ana.

Solorio is a former Santa Ana City Councilman and a former State Assemblyman. He currently works as a lobbyist at a law firm in Irvine. He is endorsed by the Santa Ana Police Officers Association.  Continue reading→

Ward 5 City Council candidate Juan Villegas to kick off his campaign on 9/7

Posted on by Posted in 2016 Elections, Civic Affairs, Crime, Elections, Juan Villegas, Politics, Roman Reyna, Santa Ana 2 Comments

Santa Ana Ward 5 City Council candidate Juan Villegas, a law enforcement officer with 25 years of experience fighting crime, is hosting the kick-off to his campaign on Wednesday, Sep. 7, 2016, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., at the Santa Ana Police Officer Association Hall, located at 1607 N. Sycamore, in Santa Ana.

Villegas is running against an incumbent, Councilman Roman Reyna, who recently voted against hiring more police officers despite the huge increase in violent crime over the past three years. Reyna’s brother reportedly died in prison and Reyna himself has admitted to being shot and wounded at a park when he was younger. When Reyna ran for Mayor of Santa Ana he was caught posing with members of the Mexican Mafia, in a picture that was widely circulated on social media. He refused to explain why he was hanging out with these individuals. Continue reading→

Poll – what should we do about the homeless problem in Santa Ana?

Posted on by Posted in 2016 Elections, Civic Affairs, Crime, homeless, Orange County, Politics, Santa Ana 1 Comment
What should we do about the homeless in Santa Ana?

Santa Ana City Council Member Michele Martinez, who is running for the First District of the Orange County Board of Supervisors, appeared on the John and Ken radio show yesterday afternoon, on AM 640. I don’t think she knew in advance that John and Ken are conservatives – and they only invite politicians onto their show to embarrass them. The interview was hard to listen to as John and Ken yelled at Martinez throughout the interview and barely let her get a word in edgewise. You can hear the interview here.

The issue they were upset about is the homeless problem at Santa Ana’s Civic Center. If you have not been out there recently you will be amazed and disgusted by the situation. Our Civic Center has essentially become a homeless camp with trash and human waste all over the place. The matter has been somewhat improved with the addition of more portable bathrooms but it is still far from optimal and is certainly not safe for those who have business at the Civic Center. Continue reading→

Supervisor Do is expanding a County service center in Little Saigon in an election year

Posted on by Posted in 2016 Elections, Andrew Do, Little Saigon, Orange County, Politics, Republican Party, Santa Ana, Westminster Leave a comment

Supervisor Andrew Do to Expand Community Service Center Providing Taxpayers with Expedited Services

(Westminster, CA) – Orange County Supervisor Andrew Do is making it easier for taxpayers to access county services with the launch of an expanded community service center.

Next Friday, September 2nd, the public is invited to attend the grand opening of the upgraded Orange County Community Service Center. Continue reading→

Why did Santa Ana’s education unions reject every woman running for the School Board?

Posted on by Posted in 2016 Elections, Beatriz Mendoza, Cecilia Iglesias, Education, Gloria Alvarado, Mark McLoughlin, Politics, Santa Ana, SAUSD, Women 8 Comments

Today was Women’s Equality Day but we have not made much progress in Santa Ana. Our local education unions endorsed three men for the SAUSD School Board election in November. They did not even bother to interview the women in the race.

Now I cannot blame the Santa Ana Educators Association (SAEA) and the California School Employees Association (CSEA) Chapter 41 for not backing SAUSD School Board incumbent Cecilia Iglesias. She is a conservative who believes in school choice and wants to spend the district’s money on hiring more teachers and more teacher’s aides instead of just paying the teachers more. So of course the education unions don’t like her.

But what about the other women who are running for the SAUSD School Board? Continue reading→

SAUSD School Board candidate Mark McLoughlin won’t be allowed to lie to the voters after all

Posted on by Posted in 2016 Elections, Bruce T. Bauer, Education, Mark McLoughlin, Politics, Santa Ana, SAUSD Leave a comment

In the Santa Ana Unified School District board race, with three seats open, candidate Bruce Bauer challenged fellow Santa Ana Planning Commissioner Mark McLoughlin’s designation as “Educator/Business Owner,” according to the O.C. Register.

The Orange County Registrar of Voters upheld Bauer’s challenge, and McLoughlin changed his designation to “Education Business Advisor.” Continue reading→