The ballots for the upcoming Nov. 3 General Election should be arriving soon, perhaps by Oct. 5. It is time to start thinking about how we are going to vote in what is a historic City Council and Mayoral Election here in Santa Ana.

This is the first time we will be voting for the City Council on a Ward Specific basis. And this is the first time in over 20 years that Mayor Miguel Pulido won’t be on the ballot as he has finally termed out.

Santa Ana City Council

Ward 1 Candidates

• Tony Adame – Entrepeneur/CEO – the Founder of the Suavecito Company – info@tonyadame.com. Candidate Statement.
• Cynthia Contreras – Orange County Probation Coordinator. Chindirella2@yahoo.com. Candidate Statement.
• Thai Viet Phan – An attorney and a Santa Ana Planning Commissioner. Info@thaivietphan.com. Candidate Statement.
• Thomas Gordon – School Facilities Manager. No candidate statement. thomas.anthony.gordon@gmail.com.

Our Ward 1 pick – We really like both Thai Viet Phan and Cynthia Contreras. They are both registered Democrats but Phan leans more to the left while Contreras is more of a moderate. Contreras gets bonus points for being a mom so we’re going with her.

Ward 3 Candidates

• Jeffrey Katz – an attorney and President of the Floral Park Neighborhood Association. Vote4katz@gmail.com. http://vote4katz.com/
• Jessie Lopez – She is an active coalition member of Rise Up Willowick. and a member of the Orange County Democratic Party Central Committee. Jessie@votejessielopez.com
• Jose “Joe” Madueña – Irishjoe2030@yahoo.com
• Mark McLoughlin – a Santa Ana Planning Commissioner. McloughlinForCityCouncil@gmail.com https://mcloughlinforcitycouncil.com/
• Danny Vega – the founder of the the Facebook page, Neighbors of Santa Ana. https://vegaforcouncil.com/. Vegaforcouncil@gmail.com.
• Jannelle Welker – She works for O.C. Supervisor Doug Chaffee. Jannelle@votewelker.com

Our Ward 3 Pick – Jeffrey Katz is the most impressive Ward 3 candidate, and it’s not close. He is an attorney and a longtime neighborhood leader. Pulido’s machine is backing Mark McLoughlin, but we prefer new leadership on our City Council, not retreaded City Commissioners. Bonus – Katz has spent years working on the local homeless problem. He is the most likely to actually have good ideas on what is perhaps the biggest issue facing our city.

Ward 5 Candidates

• Johnathan Ryan Hernandez – Community Health Worker. johnathan@hernandezforsantaana.org. Candidate Statement.
• Victor Mendez – Businessman/Car Dealer. vicdmendez@gmail.com. Candidate Statement.
• Laura Perez – Property Management Coordinator. Lauraperez7428@gmail.com. Candidate Statement.
• Juan Villegas, Councilman/Sheriff Officer – juan@juanvillegas.com. Candidate Statment.

Our Ward 5 Pick – Councilman Juan Villegas was one of two City Council Members who voted against the massive SAPD pay raise, but as a longtime member of law enforcement we know he is a crime fighter. He just doesn’t like to waste taxpayer money and we appreciate that. He has our full endorsement. Bonus – Villegas opened Santa Ana’s first Family Justice Center, for victims of domestic violence, child abuse, elder abuse, sexual assault and human trafficking. He has a big heart and we need to keep him on the City Council!

Mayoral Candidates

• Cecilia Iglesas -Educator/Taxpayer Advocate. Iglesias4mayor@gmail.com. Candidate Statement.
• Claudia C. Alvarez – Prosecutor/College Trustee. Alvarez4mayor@gmail.com. Candidate Statement.
• George Collins – Business Owner. Candidate Statement.
• Mark I. Lopez – Business Owner. Tango1mikemike@aol.com. No candidate statement.
• Vincente Sarmiento – Councilmember, City of Santa Ana/Businessman. info@sarmientoformayor.com. Candidate Statement.
• Jose Solorio – Councilmember/Father. jsolorio@aol.com. Candidate Statement.

Our Pick for Mayor – We have been fans of Ceci Iglesias for years because she always opposes wasting taxpayer money and she stands up against Special Interests. If you prefer to vote for a Democrat we like Jose Solorio. He has an even-keeled temperament and major connections in D.C. and in Sacramento that will help our residents.

SAUSD School Board

We are supporting the three challengers who are running against the teacher-union supported incumbents. The challengers include Cecilia Aguinaga; Judith Carillo and Oscar Reyes. We do not feel that the SAUSD School Board should be run by teacher union puppets.

Legislative Seats

• 69th Assembly District – We are not fans of the incumbent, Tom Daly, going back to his time as Anaheim Mayor when he was firmly anti-Latino. Unfortunately this year’s Republican candidate, Jon Paul White, is a major Trumper and is also anto-Latino. We cannot support either candidate.
• 72nd Assembly District – We mightily dislike the Republican candidate, Janet Nguyen. She is corrupt and will only work for the Special Interests, not the residents. We are supporting Diedre Nguyen, the Democratic challenger.
• 46th Congressional District – We are supporting the incumbent, Lou Correa.

County Seats

• We are supporting the incumbent in the First District, Supervisor Andrew Do. His opponent, Sergio Contreras, has helped to put the City he serves as a Council Member, Westminster, in dire financial straits and he will likely do the same to the County of Orange. Contreras is far too beholden to the labor unions.

Rancho Santiago Community College District Board of Trustees

• Area 3 – Local businessman Mike Gonzalez has our support. The other challenge, Sal Tinajero, was the main architect of the Santa Ana Measure X Sales Tax increase that resulted in Santa Ana residents paying the highest sales tax in orange County.
• Area 5 – Former Santa Ana City Councilman Brett Franklin is our pick. Brett is the only candidate for Area 5 who will oppose new taxes and fight the waste of taxpayer money at Santa Ana College and the Rancho Santiago Community College District.

Here are the posts we have written in the past few weeks about the candidates running in the November election:

• Spotlight on Mayoral candidate Vince Sarmiento
• Katz is our pick for the Santa Ana City Council’s Ward 3
• Spotlight on the 2020 Santa Ana Mayoral candidates
• Spotlight on the 2020 SAUSD School Board candidates
• Loretta Sanchez, Sal Tinajero and Brett Franklin all vying for the RSCCD College Board this November
• Spotlight on the Santa Ana City Council Ward 1 candidates
• Santa Ana’s convicted felon November City Council election slate
• The architect of Santa Ana’s failed Measure X tax increase wants your vote again this November
• Spotlight on the Santa Ana City Council Ward 3 candidates
• Can O.C. Democratic candidates recover from the Ho Chi Minh Facebook scandal?

Statewide Ballot Measures

Prop 14: NO

• Bonds for Government Subsidized Stem Cell Research 

Allows politicians to borrow $5.5 billion at a cost of $7.8 billion to taxpayers to give away funds to so-called research studies on stem cells.  Previous government funding for this was riddled with mismanagement and waste.   

Prop 15: NO

• Statewide Property Tax Increase (Caution: Ballot Has Deceptive Title)

Deceptive title on your actual ballot will claim it “Increases funding sources for public schools…” when this is REALLY a massive $12-15 billion tax increase that will destroy jobs.  This measure guts Prop 13 from 1978 (Howard Jarvis’ Initiative) for commercial, retail, industrial, and other properties and also allows state politicians to impose new taxes on home-based businesses.  Prop 15 will increase your cost-of-living at a time when working families are already struggling to survive. Worse, if this flawed and costly tax hike measure passes, expect a companion measure in next election to repeal Prop 13 from 1978 and increase property taxes on homeowners.  For more information and to join the fight against Prop 15, go to www.StopPropertyTaxHikes.org

Prop 16: NO

• Authorizes Discrimination on the Basis of Race in Government Decisions and Hiring (Caution: Ballot Has Deceptive Title)

Deceptive title on your actual ballot will claim it “Allows Diversity as a Factor in Public Employment…” when this would reverse a voter-approved Constitutional Amendment from the 1990s that banned any discrimination on the basis of race in any government decision. If this measure passes, race-based preferences such as quotas and affirmative action would be allowed and merit-based criteria will be disregarded.  Prop 16 fans the flames of racial division and is a step back in the fight for equal protection under the law. 

Prop 17: NO

• Gives Parolees the Right to Vote 

Biased title on your actual ballot will claim it “Restores right to vote after completing prison term” but fails to note that parolees have NOT yet completed their sentence for their crimes and parole is still considered part of the sentence. Prop 17 would restore early voting rights to violent criminals and is offensive to crime victims. If you break our laws, why should you have a vote in setting our laws?  Under existing law, voting rights can be restored once an individual completes their full sentence, including parole, so Prop 17 is not needed.   

Prop 18: NO

• Gives 17-Year-Olds the Right to Vote  

For a cost of over $1 million per election cycle, 17-year-olds would be mailed ballots to allow them to vote before they reach legal age.  State law prohibits 17-year-olds from drinking, smoking, and even tanning because science suggests they aren’t old enough to make sound decisions yet. Voting should be no different. Prop 18 is irresponsible and shows that the politicians who placed this misguided measure on the ballot are the true juveniles here.  

Prop 19: NO

• Increases Property Taxes

Prop 19 is a tax increase disguised as a tax relief measure.  Only one part of Prop 19 is good – a small provision allowing homeowners who are over 55 or meet other criteria to transfer a low property tax base to another property. However, Prop 19 then revokes property tax protections for many other homeowners and uses firefighting as mere window dressing to con voters into raising taxes. Prop 19 would set a really bad precedent and cost taxpayers too much. 

Prop 20: YES

Support the Police and Hold Criminals Accountable  (Caution: Ballot Has Deceptive Title)

Deceptive title on your actual ballot will claim it “Restricts Parole for Certain Offenses…” when in fact Prop 20 would merely reverse policies that coddle criminals and allow for early release of dangerous criminals from prison. Prop 20 will restore much-needed enforcement powers to police and prosecutors to hold criminals accountable for looting/repeated shoplifting and other crimes that were considered FELONIES before state politicians watered-down the crimes to simple misdemeanors or less. Prop 20 also expands use of DNA to help catch criminals. For more information OR to request a free “Yes on Prop 20 – Support the Police” lawn sign, go to https://reformcalifornia.org/petitions/support-police/

Prop 21: NO

• Rent Control

Prop 21 is a disastrous measure that will increase the cost-of-living in California and lead to less housing supply.  Rent control may sound good to some but everywhere rent control has been tried rents have actually skyrocketed higher. Economic studies show that Prop 21’s approach to rent control makes rents rise quicker because property owners will take the maximum allowed increase each year whether or not market conditions justify it just because they know future increases are always capped.  Prop 21 will choke the supply of apartments by providing a disincentive for builders to invest in them. 

Prop 22: YES

• Allow Uber/Lyft and other App-Based Transportation and Delivery Services to Operate in California(Caution: Ballot Has Deceptive Title)

Deceptive title on your actual ballot will claim it “Exempts App-Based Transportation and Delivery Companies from Providing Employee Benefits…” when Prop 22 actually FAVORS the drivers of these companies by allowing them the freedom to continue to work as independent contractors with a variety of benefits and protections.  Prop 22 is part of the larger fight to repeal the terrible AB 5 law that state politicians imposed this year that has all-but banned the use of independent contractors. 1 million jobs are at stake and are being damaged by AB 5. To join the fight against AB5 and in support of Prop 22, go to www.DefendFreedomToWork.com

Prop 23: NO

• New Costly Regulations for Kidney Dialysis Clinics

Deceptive title on your actual ballot will claim it “Establishes State Requirements for Kidney Dialysis Clinics” when 1) there are already numerous regulations governing these clinics and 2) Prop 23 would add unnecessary costs and burdens on kidney dialysis clinics in an attempt to force workers into unions to pay dues that then are given to politicians in the form of campaign contributions.  Prop 23 is a sham initiative that is hazardous to public health. 

Prop 24: NO

• Amends Consumer Privacy Laws

Everyone likes privacy, but Prop 24 is a flawed initiative that creates a $10 million-a-year government bureaucracy that would only be able to be reformed or eliminated by requiring voters to consider yet another ballot measure in the future. This flawed initiative actually reduces privacy in a number of ways and distracts from implementation of a new law that just went into effect to improve privacy in the digital age. Let’s wait to see the results of that existing law first before adding to costly mandates. 

Prop 25: NO

• Referendum: Should We Ban Cash Bail System for the “Honor System”

State politicians intentionally worded Prop 25 in a confusing way so that people don’t know whether a Yes vote means No and a No vote means Yes or whatever.  To simplify things, vote NO on Prop 25 if you want to block a flawed law that the politicians imposed that would ban bail as a requirement of releasing individuals charged with serious crimes. Liberals want to replace bail with the “honor system” of hoping criminals show back up for their court date. Prop 25 would result in the creation of a new costly bureaucracy where government workers would be hired to “trace” people and ask them to voluntarily come to court hearings.  Prop 25 is a dangerous law that puts crime victims at risk. 

Local Voter Guides

• Democratic Party of Orange County Voter Guide.
• Libertarian Party Voter Guide
• Republican Party of Orange County Endorsements.

About the Editor: Art Pedroza founded the New Santa Ana Blog in 2009. This year the blog has already racked up over 2.2 million views while its sister Facebook page reaches close to 300,000 people a month. Pedroza has served on several Santa Ana City Commissions, most recently the Parks and Rec Commission, and he currently serves on the O.C. Emergency Medical Services Commission. Pedroza has run for both the Santa Ana City Council and the SAUSD School Board. He has an MBA from Keller Graduate University and he resides with his family in the Park Santiago Neighborhood.