New Santa Ana | Tag Archives: miguel pulido

Palacio and Amezcua are driving the so-called “Santa Ana Spring”

Posted on August 30, 2012 by Art Pedroza Posted in 2012 Elections, Alfredo Amezcua, David Benavides, Democratic Party, Elections, Eric Alderete, John Palacio, Miguel Pulido, Myriam Tinajero, Politics, Roman Reyna, Sal Tinajero, Santa Ana, SAUSD, Valerie Amezcua, Vince Sarmiento 17 Comments

It has become increasingly obvious that the so-called “Santa Ana Spring” is actually a collection of Santa Ana politicians with different axes to grind, who have come together as their mutual petty hatreds have temporarily converged. This alliance is a shaky one at best.

The drivers of this movement are failed Santa Ana mayoral candidate Al Amezcua, who resigned from the Rancho Santiago Community College District’s Board of Education a few years ago, after he got caught living outside of the area he was elected to represent; Santa Ana Unified School District John Palacio, who survived the recall of his close friend and ally Nativo Lopez; Santa Ana Councilman Vince Sarmiento – who is bitter because he didn’t run for the 69th Assembly District and who has designs on the Santa Ana Mayor’s office; Santa Ana Council Member Michele Martinez, who was soundly defeated by Santa Ana Mayor Miguel Pulido back in 2008 – and who did poorly again this June as a candidate for the 69th Assembly District; and Council Member David Benavides, who is embroiled in a controversy regarding allegations of infidelity and divorce. Continue reading→

Santa Ana’s artists know they can’t trust mayoral candidate David Benavides

Posted on August 29, 2012 by Art Pedroza Posted in 2012 Elections, Arts and Culture, Churches and Religion, David Benavides, Democratic Party, Elections, Miguel Pulido, Santa Ana 23 Comments

When word got out that Irvine’s Newsong Church was in escrow to buy the landmark Santora building in Downtown Santa Ana, the artists community in our Downtown Artists Village area erupted.

A group of artists concerned about the sale of downtown Santa Ana’s Santora building to Newsong Church said that City Councilman David Benavides’ attendance at the church’s services should preclude him from serving on an ad hoc committee examining the sale, according to the Voice of OC.

The Voice of OC also reported that “Some artists suspect that Benavides, who is a real estate agent, has a financial interest in the sale. They question whether Benavides is representing the artists’, the city’s or the church’s interests on the committee. He appeared in a video about the building and the city made for the Newsong congregation.” Continue reading→

Santa Ana announces addition of 22 new park acres!

Posted on August 20, 2012 by Art Pedroza Posted in Civic Affairs, Michele Martinez, Miguel Pulido, Parks and Recreation, Sal Tinajero, Santa Ana, SAUSD, Vince Sarmiento 1 Comment

City of Santa Ana, Downtown Orange County

Community: Santa Ana City Council Announces Improvement in Acres of Recreational Space

SANTA ANA, CA (August 20, 2012) – For the last twenty years, Santa Ana has had .9-acres of recreational open space for every 1,000 residents. In the last five years, the City has made great strides in planning and building new recreational open space opportunities, which are projected to add 22 new acres to the City’s park system. At the August 20th Council meeting, the City Council announced that the new open space ratio will be 1.48-acres per 1,000 residents. Continue reading→

Collins, Benavides and Moreno fighting over the same voters

Posted on August 17, 2012 by Art Pedroza Posted in 2012 Elections, Civic Affairs, David Benavides, Elections, George Collins, Lupe Moreno, Miguel Angel Briseno, Miguel Pulido, Politics, Roy Alvarado, Santa Ana 17 Comments

Can you spot all the Usual Suspect Mayoral candidates in this photo?

Santa Ana Mayoral candidate George Collins gloated on Facebook today because his name is going to appear first on the ballot, as per the California Secretary of State’s random drawing, which determined the order of the candidates on the November ballot. But does Collins have a chance to beat the incumbent, Mayor Miguel Pulido?

The fact is, there are too many candidates running against Pulido, ant to make matters worse for Collins, he is fighting over the same voters with two other challengers – Minuteman Lupe Moreno and Santa Ana Council Member David Benavides. All three of them are hoping to get the Usual Suspect vote, but there really aren’t enough of those votes left in town to matter, even if one of the candidates were able to garner all of their votes. Continue reading→

Update: Tinajero drops out of the Santa Ana Mayor’s race

Posted on August 11, 2012 by Editor Posted in 2012 Elections, Civic Affairs, David Benavides, Elections, George Collins, Lupe Moreno, Miguel Angel Briseno, Miguel Pulido, Politics, Roy Alvarado, Sal Tinajero, Santa Ana 14 Comments

Santa Ana Council Member Sal Tinajero has dropped out of the Santa Ana Mayor’s race. The remaining candidates include:

Mayor Miguel Pulido
Council Member David Benavides
Analyst/Production Manager George Collins Continue reading→

Updated: Santa Ana Voter Poll – Who Should be our Next Mayor?

Posted on August 2, 2012 by Art Pedroza Posted in 2012 Elections, Civic Affairs, David Benavides, Elections, George Collins, Miguel Angel Briseno, Miguel Pulido, Politics, Roy Alvarado, Sal Tinajero, Santa Ana 17 Comments

Public Opinion Poll Results

The Santa Ana Mayor’s race is quickly growing crowded. Mayor Miguel A. Pulido will be facing off against two Council Members, David Benavides and Sal Tinajero, but there are others in the race as well, including retired engineer Roy Alvarado, CSUF student Miguel Angel Briseno, and possibly videographer George Collins as well.

You already know who Benavides and Tinajero are. Here is a rundown of the other candidates: Continue reading→

UPDATE: City Council places Mayoral term limit measure on the Nov. ballot

Posted on August 1, 2012 by Art Pedroza Posted in 2012 Elections, Carlos Bustamante, Civic Affairs, Claudia Alvarez, David Benavides, Democratic Party, Michele Martinez, Miguel Pulido, Politics, Sal Tinajero, Santa Ana, Vince Sarmiento 30 Comments

UPDATE: A four member city council voted tonight to unanimously put to the voters a four term limit of 2 years each for the office of Mayor.

I can understand why the Santa Ana City C0uncil Members are upset at Mayor Miguel Pulido. Let’s face it – he has been running circles around them for almost 20 years. But he is now dealing with a Council that, for the most part, he did not elect. He opposed Sal Tinajero and Michele Martinez when they first ran for the City Council. He did create David Benavides, but when Vince Sarmiento was appointed to the Council, to replace Jose Solorio, he was already his own man. Unlike Benavides, he was a polished product and a guy most people respected. Who would have forseen two Pulido allies going down in flames – Carlos Bustamante’s own alleged misbehavior did him in, and Claudia Alvarez could not undo the term limits she helped create. Now Pulido, like Julius Caesar, is surrounded by short swords and although we are headed into August, it might as well be the Ides of March.

Back in Pulido’s heyday, he and former City Manager Dave Ream knew how to work this bunch. Once they got elected, they would be warmly welcomed, even if they had initially been opposed. Commission appointments would be handed out like Halloween candies and just like that Council members would be subverted. But Ream is gone and so is his magic bag of redevelopment – and now even the developers that lived high on the hog in our town for so long are slinking to the Council’s side. Continue reading→

Tinajero running for Mayor, making Benavides an afterthought

Posted on July 30, 2012 by Art Pedroza Posted in 2012 Elections, Carlos Bustamante, Civic Affairs, David Benavides, Democratic Party, Elections, Labor, Miguel Pulido, Politics, Sal Tinajero, Santa Ana 31 Comments

Popular Santa Ana Council Member Sal Tinajero pulled papers today to run for Mayor of Santa Ana. Tinajero served on the SAUSD School Board before getting elected to the Santa Ana City Council in 2006, when he beat a candidate backed by Santa Ana Mayor Miguel Pulido. Tinajero won by just under a thousand votes against Jennifer Villasenor, according to Smart Voter.

Tinajero just missed being the top vote-getter when he won a seat on the SAUSD School Board in 2004. He was the top vote-getter when he first won a school board seat in 2000. Continue reading→

Benavides announces campaign for Mayor of Santa Ana

Posted on July 30, 2012 by Art Pedroza Posted in 2012 Elections, David Benavides, Democratic Party, Elections, Miguel Pulido, Politics, Santa Ana 3 Comments

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 30, 2012
Contact: Benavides for Santa Ana Mayor, 714.475.1630, david@davidbenavides.com

Santa Ana Councilmember David Benavides announces candidacy for Mayor; thanks incumbent Mayor for over 25 years at City Hall.

Santa Ana, CA (July 30, 2012) – “Santa Ana is ready to once again be the thriving urban center and heart of Orange County. I am ready to be the Mayor with the vision and commitment to help our city realize its potential,” Benavides said. “As Mayor I will engage our residents and businesses and bring our community together around the common goals of safe neighborhoods, strong businesses, and building our city into a cultural destination – a city in which we can all take pride.” Continue reading→

Why I won’t be voting for Benavides in November

Posted on July 30, 2012 by Art Pedroza Posted in 2012 Elections, Carlos Bustamante, David Benavides, Democratic Party, Elections, Miguel Pulido, Politics, Santa Ana 36 Comments

Is it any surprise to anyone that Santa Ana Council Member David Benavides chose to break the news that he is running against Santa Ana Mayor Miguel Pulido on the Republican OC Political blog? That is exactly what I have come to expect from Benavides.

When Benavides was first elected, back in 2006, he had a great story to offer. He had come to Santa Ana as part of a ministry and he decided to stay here and put down roots. But he very quickly was compromised by Santa Ana’s racist old guard – the Usual Suspects. Mostly old and angry Republicans they brought him up through the Neighborhood Association movement – which pretends to represent the people of Santa Ana but realistically represents at most 1% of our community – and is heavily subsidized by our tax dollars. He declared on his Smart Voter page that he was the winner of the “Neighborhood Hero Award,” the penultimate badge of honor for these metiches. Continue reading→

Why they can’t beat Miguel Pulido – and he will win again this year

Posted on July 29, 2012 by Art Pedroza Posted in 2012 Elections, Brett Franklin, Carlos Bustamante, Civic Affairs, Claudia Alvarez, David Benavides, Elections, Eric Alderete, Julio Perez, Latinos, Michele Martinez, Miguel Pulido, Paul Walters, Politics, Roman Reyna, Sal Tinajero, Santa Ana, SAUSD, Transportation, Valerie Amezcua 10 Comments

UPDATE: Council Member Sal Tinajero has pulled papers to run against Mayor Pulido this November. Chisme has it that Benavides will be pressured to get out of the race ASAP.

UPDATE: Council Member David Benavides has announced that he is running for Mayor. Pulido has nothing to worry about.

Santa Ana Mayor Miguel Pulido’s detractors are befuddled about how exactly he keeps on winning, every two years. What they don’t understand is that their views don’t reflect the views of the residents at large in our city.

Santa Ana is a huge city. The “inside baseball” and chismoso/gadfly set is fairly small, perhaps a hundred people at most. In 2010, mayoral challenger Alfredo Amezcua lined up a lot of these folks – and combined them with the dwindling “Usual Suspects.” Amezcua spent a quarter million dollars and he thought he had victory in the bag. But you see what he was listening to was an echo chamber – and he failed to reach the majority of voters in Santa Ana. Continue reading→

Judge rules that Alvarez cannot run again for the Santa Ana City Council

Posted on July 28, 2012 by Art Pedroza Posted in 2012 Elections, Civic Affairs, Claudia Alvarez, Courts, Democratic Party, Elections, Karina Onofre, Miguel Pulido, Republican Party, Rob Richardson, Roman Reyna, Santa Ana 18 Comments

An Orange County Superior Court judge has ruled that Santa Ana City Councilwoman Claudia Alvarez may not run for a fourth council term, according to the Voice of OC. I have also confirmed this with my own sources – Alvarez’ political career is over – or is it? She can still run for Mayor of Santa Ana, although that is not likely as Mayor Miguel Pulido supported her attempt to run again. And she could run for the Santa Ana Unified School District’s Board of Education, or for the Rancho Santiago Community College District’s Board of Education.

The unfortunate side affect of this ruling is that it decreases the chance that an opponent to Pulido will arise. If someone does challenge him then Alvarez will likely run for Mayor and count on a vote split putting her in office, particularly if one of her male colleagues opts to run against Pulido. Her defeat in this lawsuit likely means Pulido will sail to an easy victory in November. Continue reading→

Pulido scrambling to stop a mayoral term limit ballot measure

Posted on July 21, 2012 by Art Pedroza Posted in 2012 Elections, Charles Hart, Civic Affairs, David Benavides, Eric Alderete, Michele Martinez, Miguel Pulido, Santa Ana, Shane Barrows, Term Limits, Vince Sarmiento 8 Comments

Sources at City Hall are telling me that Mayor Miguel Pulido is working overtime to stop an attempt by the Santa Ana City Council to draft a term limit measure that will eventually end his career as Mayor of Santa Ana.

The City Council appointed an Ad Hoc committee to consider term limits. The term limit committee includes Council Members Michele Martinez, David Benavides and Vince Sarmiento. That committee will present their findings to their colleagues at the next Santa Ana City Council meeting. It is thought that the committee will show up with a prepared ballot measure that the voters will be able to consider in the November general election. Continue reading→

SAUSD Trustee Roman Reyna will run for the Santa Ana City Council

Posted on July 18, 2012 by Editor Posted in 2012 Elections, Civic Affairs, Claudia Alvarez, David Benavides, Education, Politics, Roman Reyna, Santa Ana 19 Comments

Pictured: Roman Reyna and Carlos Bustamante

SAUSD Trustee Roman Reyna has confirmed on this Facebook page that he is running for the Santa Ana City Council, again, this November. Reyna will be a candidate for Ward 5, which is currently held by Santa Ana Mayor Pro Tem Claudia Alvarez. She is termed out however a lawsuit filed by Santa Ana Parks and Rec Commissioner Max Madrid is seeking to compel the Santa Ana City Clerk to issue nomination papers to Alvarez, on the grounds that Measure D, which extended Council terms, reset the term limit clock for Alvarez. If Madrid’s lawsuit prevails Reyna will have to face off against Alvarez – again. She already beat him once, back in 2004. In that race Alvarez got over 26,500 votes while Reyna got only 10,720 votes, according to Smart Voter. Continue reading→

Santa Ana City Council establishes a term limits committee

Posted on July 17, 2012 by Editor Posted in 2012 Elections, Carlos Bustamante, Civic Affairs, Claudia Alvarez, David Benavides, Democratic Party, Karina Onofre, Michele Martinez, Miguel Pulido, Politics, Roman Reyna, Sal Tinajero, Santa Ana, Vince Sarmiento 2 Comments

Tonight’s Santa Ana City Council meeting, which was held at the SAPD’s Community Room, was, as predicted, a real zoo. Media vans and news crews were everywhere and residents and out of town bloggers packed the proceedings.

As we stated in an earlier post, Council Member Carlos Bustamante, who is facing serious felony sex crime and public theft charges, was not likely to show up, and he didn’t. This is his second unexcused absence. After sixty days of not showing up to work, at City Hall, the City Council can dump him and appoint someone to fill out his term. Continue reading→