November 16, 2018. Orange, Calif. — Democratic Party of Orange County Chair Fran Sdao commended Democratic candidates today for a significant range of historic “firsts” that may signal a wave of inclusive representation across Orange County, a region recently known for its stalwart conservatism.
The breakthroughs are wide-ranging. They include “firsts” for women, people of color, for diverse faiths, the LGBTQ community, Millennials, and STEM careers in public office.
“Our 2018 Midterm Democratic candidates deserve recognition for breaking ground in every sense of the word. They offered a better path forward, and voters agreed,” said Sdao. “Our neighborhoods are better served when our elected leaders reflect our diversity. This is great news for all Orange County communities.”
The Democratic Party of Orange County endorsed a record number of local candidates for the 2018 Midterm cycle — nearly twice as many as in 2016 — and nine of out ten were either a woman, a person of color, LGBT, or under age 40.
Massive voter turnout for the 2018 Midterms, combined with higher Democratic Party voter registration and changing voter demographics, propelled the diverse slate to victory and into the history books.
Although votes are still being counted and election results are not yet certified by the Registrar of Voters, the following Democrats are leading by strong margins (for one, a history-making margin) or have declared victory.
- Harley Rouda would be the first Democrat elected to the 48th Congressional District.
- Katie Porter would be the first Democrat elected to the 45th Congressional District.
- Ahmad Zahra (Fullerton City Council, District 5) would be the first openly LGBT Muslim elected to office in the United States.
- Farrah Khan (Irvine City Council) would be the first Muslim woman elected in Orange County.
- Two cities — Irvine and Costa Mesa — would be the first woman-majority City Councils in Orange County.
- Connor Traut would be elected to Buena Park City Council by the largest margin of victory in Buena Park history, and would be the youngest Council Member elected to the Buena Park City Council.
- Jordan Brandman remains the first openly LGBT person elected to Anaheim City Council, and would be the first LGBT person to serve in District 2.
- Luis “Jerry” Flores would be the youngest Latino elected to Centralia School Board.
- Adam Rogers would be the first openly LGBT person elected to La Habra School Board.
- Andrea Marr and Arlis Reynolds (Costa Mesa City Council Districts 3 and 5, respectively) would be the first clean energy engineers elected to office in Orange County, and the first Latinas elected to Costa Mesa City Council.
- Manuel Chavez (Costa Mesa City Council, District 4) would be both the first Latino and youngest person elected to Costa Mesa City Council.
About The Democratic Party of Orange County
The Democratic Party of Orange County (DPOC) is the official organization for Democrats in America’s sixth-largest county, serving over half a million registered Democratic voters and more than twenty grassroots Democratic Clubs. DPOC is quickly becoming the new leading majority party in Orange County and preparing to expand ground in 2020. To volunteer or donate to elect strong Democrats that will fight for freedom and opportunity for all, visit DPOC at www.ocdemocrats.org or call (714) 634-DEMS.