Not unthinkable anymore: Latinas increasingly seek O.C. political offices
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Good morning. It’s Wednesday, Oct. 19. I’m Carol Cormaci, bringing you today’s TimesOC newsletter with the latest roundup of news and events.
Latinas with a passion for improving their communities are increasingly stepping up to take on leadership roles in Orange County, according to this in-depth look at the trend by my colleague, L.A. Times reporter Gabriel San Román.
“The rise of the Latina politician is one more sign that the old Orange County has given way to a place where whites are a minority and registered Democrats outnumber Republicans,” San Román reports.
“I started looking into other council members,” said Cynthia Vasquez, 45, a legal consultant who is running in the race for Mission Viejo City Council, told San Román. “I figured, ‘Why not me?’ because I’m just as qualified, if not more.”
Mission Viejo is about two-thirds white, 19% Latino and 14% Asian, San Román reports, and is still heavily Republican, but change is in the wind: A majority of voters backed Joe Biden for president in 2020.
Countywide, 26 Latinas are running for city council, school board or supervisor offices, according to the article.
“That’s a huge increase from a decade ago, when a handful of Latinas sought local office and only two won,” San Román points out. “The 26 Latinas running for local office in O.C. this year represent a 73% increase from 2012, when 15 ran. By 2018, the number was 24,” he notes.
In the article, San Román speaks to several Latinas who are either seeking a place at the table or are already seated and serving their constituents, including some who had to throw their hats into the ring more than once to get elected.
“After the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe vs. Wade in June, the Democratic Party of Orange County flooded its members with text messages in an eleventh-hour effort to recruit women of color to run for office,” San Román reports. “Heading into November, the party has endorsed more Latinas in O.C., and more candidates overall, than ever before.”
“Did I ever think that I would see this many Latinas on the ballot?” Ada Briceño, a Latina labor leader who has chaired the O.C. Democrats since 2018, said to the reporter. “No, but it’s a different world today.”
MORE NEWS
— The fight to raise awareness of human rights abuses in Iran is gaining momentum in Orange County, as a local demonstration united under the rallying cry, “Women, Life, Freedom” drew protesters Friday to Costa Mesa City Hall. The events follow the Sept. 16 death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who had been detained three days earlier by the nation’s “morality police” for the alleged improper wearing of a hijab, or head covering, as required by law.
— At 10:20 a.m. tomorrow the Great California ShakeOut earthquake drill takes place. According to organizers, 865,820 Orange County residents had registered as of Tuesday morning to take part in the preparedness exercise. Alongside the drill, a team of computer science researchers from UC Irvine will be working to put into practice a new technology that they say will be able to provide critical information for care and locating senior patients in the event of an emergency and evacuation.
— Amplify Energy Corp. has agreed to pay $50 million to thousands of Southern California fishermen, tourism companies and property owners who sued after last year’s oil spill off the Huntington Beach coast, according to this Associated Press report. Under the proposal, Amplify would pay $34 million to commercial fishermen and $9 million to coastal property owners. It also would pay $7 million to waterfront tourism operators, including businesses that provide surf lessons and leisure cruises and shops that sell swimwear and fishing bait.
— President Joe Biden was in Orange County Friday afternoon on his campaign season swing through the West. In his address at Irvine Valley College, with incumbent Democratic Rep. Katie Porter at his side, Biden touted the benefits of the $700-billion Inflation Reduction Act he signed in August.
— After hearing from local environmental groups objecting to its construction, the Coastal Commission on Friday approved an application submitted by the city of Newport Beach for construction of a confined
aquatic disposal site, known as a CAD, in Newport Harbor.
— The nonprofit Easterseals of Southern California, which offers a Severe Behavior Services program in Irvine for children and adults with developmental disabilities that present severe impulsive behaviors, recently welcomed a $1-million state budget allocation through the office of state Assemblyman Steven Choi (R-Irvine). Easterseals hopes to raise $6 million to $7 million to expand its program.
— Employees in the Ocean View School District will see beefed up paychecks after the school board last week approved a 10% pay raise retroactive to July 1. The district has not been able to provide a double-digit raise for its employees in more than 20 years, board President Gina Clayton-Tarvin said. She further noted that when she was first elected to the board in 2012, district employees had not received a raise in several years, and the relationship between the board and labor groups was particularly poor.
— The Orange County Sheriff’s Department is assisting Caltrans and California Highway Patrol with an investigation into possible human remains discovered Monday inside a drainpipe near the 55 Freeway in Costa Mesa.
— A judge sentenced David Lee Haller, a 55-year-old Newport Beach doctor convicted of sending sexually suggestive messages to high school cheerleaders, to at least six months in jail during a hearing Friday.
— Irvine resident Ze’Shawn Stanley Campbell pleaded guilty Monday to one count each of wire fraud and money laundering in a romance scam that ran from April 2014 to April 2020, according to the U.S. attorney’s office for the Central District of California. Campbell defrauded 19 victims, some of whom he developed romantic relationships with, and laundered his profits, according to his plea agreement. He received from his targets at least $250,000 and up to $1.5 million, prosecutors said. Of the 19 victims, 10 were people and nine were companies.
LIFE & LEISURE
— UC Irvine officials Thursday opened the newest location for the university’s Susan Samueli Integrative Health Institute, which they say will expand the institute’s clinical, teaching and research efforts to
advance care. The facility encompasses 21,432 square feet and is part of a larger $185-million health sciences complex.
— Ten scholarships for Orange County high school seniors are available to 1st GEN 5-Star Scholars, an online mentoring and how-to program that helps first generation students get accepted to and win scholarships from colleges and universities. Interested students should visit this site to learn more and apply before the Oct. 25 deadline.
SPORTS
— Red Bull Straight Rhythm, a head-to-head two-stroke Motocross racing event on a half-mile rhythm course, came to Huntington State Beach Saturday. The event was held in conjunction with the Moto Beach Classic, a Super Hooligan street bike race on an oval-shaped track. In the 250CC final, French rider Marvin Muskin took home first place, his fourth straight victory in the event.
— History was made Friday night when senior Bella Rasmussen of Laguna Beach High became the first girl in state history to score two touchdowns in a high school football game. L.A. Times prep sports columnist Eric Sondheimer has the story here.
— Long Beach Jordan transfer Damian Henderson ran for 262 yards and a couple of touchdowns, USC-bound Malachi Nelson threw for 280 yards and three scores and Makai Lemon, another future Trojan, came up big on both sides of the ball as Los Alamitos romped to a 52-27 win over Edison Thursday at Huntington Beach High School.
CALENDAR THIS
— Tickets are on sale now for a one-night performance, “Reunited in Dance” to be presented at the Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall on Saturday, Nov. 12. This special event will feature a cast of renowned international ballet artists. “Reunited in Dance” will bring together performers who danced with Russia’s most elite companies, such as the Bolshoi and Mariinsky ballets and Stanislavsky Theatre, before fleeing the country. The program is under the artistic direction of British dancer Xander Parish, former principal dancer at the Mariinsky. Tickets, starting at $59, can be purchased here.
— El Día de los Muertos is the central theme of the award-winning 2017 animated Pixar film “Coco,” which will screen at the Laguna Beach Cultural Arts Center, 235 Forest Ave., on Sunday, Oct. 23 at 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. Families with young children are invited to enjoy the free 2 p.m. screening. The 5 p.m. show is $10 per ticket. Tickets are on sale here. The Center is also holding its annual fundraiser, also with a Day of the Dead theme, on Saturday, Oct. 29 from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Moss Point Estates tennis court. Guests are invited to stroll among altar displays dedicated to departed Laguna Beach artists. Tickets for the fundraiser are $150 and can be purchased here.
— The Newport Beach Arts Foundation will hold Art in the Park on Saturday, Oct. 22, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Newport Beach Civic Center, 100 Civic Center Drive, featuring more than 130 Southern California artists.
KEEP IN TOUCH
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I’d appreciate your help in making this the best newsletter it can be. Please send news tips, your memory of life in O.C., or comments to carol.cormaci@latimes.com.
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