No matter how the impending recount comes out in the final results of the Orange County special election to succeed Democrat Lou Correa on the Board of Supervisors, the winner is more than just Republican candidate Trung Nguyen, it is also Assemblyman Van Tran, who threw his formidable Orange County organization behind Trung to win this important victory for the Republican party. Van Tran has now demonstrated his very formidable clout in southern California politics. The odds were steep: Santa Ana Councilman Carlos Bustamante had the early support of key members of the prestigious Orange County Lincoln Club, and as predicted in this column many weeks in advance, the Lincoln Club endorsed Bustamante. ButBustamante finished a disappointing and distant 4th place in the race, with just a little over 16% of the vote. Democrat Tom Umberg was in the money, finishing third, and Garden Grove Councilmember Janet Nguyen is currently second but neck-and-neck with Trung. Janet had the advantage of the very capable Dave Gilliard as her consultant.

Whichever Nguyen is the ultimate elected official in this race, Van Tran has proven himself to be alocalpolitical power to… Read More

It has been a long standing tradition of this column, going back to 2001, to publish the "Winners and Losers of the CRP Convention" column the week after the California Republican Party Convention. If you are going to be going to the convention, this is a reminder that as a FR reader, you can make your own suggestions on who should be recognized with high (or low) honors.

There are two ways to make suggestions — the first is to simply send in e-mail to me, or send an anonymous tip (the link is above to the right). The other is to let me, or any of the other FR bloggers that you see at the convention, know of your suggestions.

I will be conferring with my colleagues before publishing the column!

So, keep an eye out! Remember that there is a lot that happens at these events, and more eyes and ears help us to identify more notable ‘people and events’ at the convention… Read More

Last night, I had the good fortune to spend a couple of hours with about 30 great GOP activists as I was the speaker to the San Diego Young Republicans! The group met over at the Karl Strauss Brewery in San Diego. I was there to talk about my candidacy for Vice Chairman, South, of the California Republican Party — and to also talk to the group about this website. (For those of you reading this, it was a pleasure to spend time with you yesterday).

The YRFC club in San Diego, under the leadership of their President, Katie Hansen, has really been making a difference for Republican candidates and causes in California’s southern-most county.

I was extremely flattered when, after I spoke, the club members voted to endorse my candidacy! I have been really excited about the level of support that I have garnered from San Diego County. My support from Congressmen Duncan Hunter and Darrell Issa have been really great, and Assemblyman Joel Anderson and FR’s own Barry Jantz have been super. I’ll have one more swing into San Diego County and then off to convention later this week.

In the… Read More

So you haven’t had a chance to meet Nathan Fletcher in person? Now you can "meet him" by watching this video! Of course, you can find out more about his campaign on his website. Today, Nathan will announce his candidacy for State Assembly in AD 75 (Plescia). … Read More

When my husband and I were talking about Mayor Gavin Newsom’s public relations problems the other day, I told him that I would not be surprised if he announced a drinking or drug problem as an excuse for his, as Newsom puts it, “personal lapse of judgment.” Surprise, surprise, the mayor announced yesterday afternoon that he has a drinking problem and will seek counseling through the Delancey Street program.

That should play nicely in San Francisco where Delancey Street is a deservedly popular non-profit program. But unless they’ve radically changed their program in the past few years, Delancey Street is a live-in rehabilitation program for people coming out of prison. They go cold… Read More

This just in…

The California Republican National Hispanic Assembly endorsed Jon Fleischman for California Republican Party Vice Chairman South.

They join the overwhelming majority of GOP legislators from the region and hundreds of big donor and party activist in supporting Jon’s campaign for CRP office.

The press release from the Republican National Hispanic Assembly didn’t cite any specific reason for their support for Jon but I assume like most of Jon’s supporters they appreciate how well versed he is on the issues that affect our party and that he is so willing to speak out for what is right and good. Jon’s supporters most appreciate his ideological passion.… Read More

A dual congratulations this afternoon. First we would like to congratulate former Assemblywoman Lynn Daucher for being named by Governor Schwarzenegger to head of the California Department of Aging. "But Jon, What is the Department of Aging," you ask?

Here’s what they tell us: As the designated State Unit on Aging, the California Department of Aging is part of the California Health and Human Services Agency. The Department administers Older Americans Act programs for supportive services, in-home services, congregate and home-delivered meals and a system of multipurpose senior centers. It also administers the program for community service employment; programs for advocacy and protection; and programs which provide health insurance counseling, case management, Alzheimer’s Day Care Resource Center and Adult Day Health Care services. Further, it… Read More

For those who couldn’t attend but were interested in what was said at the UC Berkeley’s Institute of Governmental Studies seminar, "The 2006 Governor’s Race: An Inside View" can watch the two-day seminar on a web cast here. The web cast is divided into segments–Schwarzenegger, Angelides and Westly teams. Those who are interested in learning more about how the governor’s political staff thinks should watch the Schwarzenegger segment, "Laying the Groundwork." The team talks candidly about how they helped the governor shift from the 2005 special election loss to the 2006 gubernatorial win. … Read More