By Katy Nguyen
Orange County is holding a special election on Mar. 9 to fill the vacant seat of former Board of Supervisors member Michelle Steel, who was elected in November to the U.S. House of Representatives in California’s 48th congressional district.
Five candidates are on the ballot for this seat, which represents Costa Mesa, Cypress, Huntington Beach, La Palma, Los Alamitos, Newport Beach, Seal Beach and Stanton, as well as some parts of Fountain Valley and Buena Park. The winner, who will be one of five elected officials on a board that has legislative and executive authority over the county, will serve out the remainder of Steel’s term until 2022.
Running for the office are:
- Former supervisor and state senator John Moorlach
- Newport Beach city councilman Kevin Muldoon
- Fountain Valley mayor Michael Vo
- Costa Mesa mayor Katrina Foley
- Corona Del Mar tax attorney Janet Rappaport
The Orange County Republican Party has endorsed Moorlach, while the Democratic Party has endorsed Foley. Rappaport is running with no endorsements. Muldoon has been endorsed by Supervisor Andrew Do, Crime Survivors PAC, and various officials from District 2 cities. Vo has also been endorsed by Supervisor Do and other officials, as well as former officials of the surrounding area.
Foley has also been endorsed by the Orange County Professional Firefighters Association, Orange County Employees Association and National Union of Healthcare Workers. The Lincoln Club of Orange County, the New Majority Orange County, and various councilmen of District 2 cities have also endorsed Moorlach.
According to the Voter Information Guide for the Second Supervisorial District Vacancy Election, Muldoon and Moorlach are running on a platform to safely reopen businesses and the economy. Foley and Do plan to provide the county access to COVID-19 testing and vaccinations, in addition to aiding local businesses.
Muldoon, Foley and Do said that they plan partner with cities to deal with homelessness. Additionally, Foley stated she would work to provide transitional and permanent housing.
This election will be the latest contest to speak to the contentious politics of Orange County, which after decades of being a conservative stronghold has in recent years seen a shift to the left. In 2016, Hillary Clinton won the county for the Democratic Party for the first time since FDR, and in 2018 Democrat Harley Rouda managed an upset victory against longtime House Republican incumbent Dana Rohrabacher.
Last year, however, Rouda lost that seat to Steel, a Republican. Steel, who as a county supervisor was part of a 4-1 majority on the board, left a vacancy that now offers Republicans a chance to reinforce their strength or Democrats an opportunity to erode their advantage.
Early election has already begun on February 8 and ballots have been sent to vote-by-mail voters of District 2. The official special election date is March 9. To locate ballot drop box locations visit: ocvote.com/dropbox
