CDP Elections: Re-Elect Florice Hoffman, Director for Region 17

This post was initially going to endorse Register Director candidates for Region 17 and Region 18, but Deborah Skurnik faced no opposition and will be easily re-elected (frankly because she does an amazing job and should be).

So this leaves Region 17 which is mostly central and west Orange County.  For delegates to the virtual California State Party Convention, there’s really only one choice for Regional Director for Region 17 an that’s to re-elect Florice Hoffman.  Florice is an experienced labor lawyer.  She’s smart.  She focused.  She’s detail-oriented.  She has a strong sense to fairness.  She’s strong in a tough-as-nails kind of way.  I haven’t always agreed with her but I have always respected her because she simply deserves it.

TheLiberalOC endorses Florice Hoffman for Regional Director and we are not alone.  Here’s who also backs her:

Ada Briceño chair DPOC
Gloria Alvarado. Vice Chair Central
Cynthia Aguirre, Vice Chair North
Libby Frolichman, Vice Chair West
Lara Horgan, Vice Chair South
Fran Sdao, Chair Emeritus
Annie Wright, former South Vice Chair
Hon. Katie Porter, Congress 45 CD
Hon Fiona Ma, California State Treasurer
Hon. Tom Daly, Assembly 69
Hon. Sharon Quirk-Silva, Assembly 65
Hon. Josh Newman. Senate 29
Diedre Thu-Ha Nguyen, Candidate Assembly 72 and Garden Grove City Council
Melissa Fox. Candidate Assembly 68 and Former Irvine City Council
Hon Katrina Foley, Board of Supervisors Elect
Hon Farrah Khan, Mayor Irvine
Hon Tammy Kim, Vice Mayor Irvine
Hon. Beckie Gomez, Board of Education, Tustin City Council
Hon. Avelino Valencia, Anaheim City Council
Hon. Kris Erickson, Orange Unified School Board
Hon. Al Jabbar, Anaheim Union School District
Hon. Ashleigh Aiken, OC Fair Board
Hon. Valerie Amezcua, Santa Unified School Board
Hon. Tina Arias Miller, Rancho Santiago Community College
Hon. Larry Labrado, Rancho Santiago Community College District
Hon. Jonathon Hernandez, Santa Ana City Council
Hon. Jesus Silva, Fullerton City Council
Hon. Jim Moreno, President Coast Community College
Hon. Aaruni Thakur, Fullerton School District
Hon. Conner Traut, Mayor Pro Tem Buena Park

Here’s her bio:

Florice Orea Hoffman was a partner in the union side labor law firm Wohlner, Kaplon, Cutler, Halford & Rosenfeld in Encino. Florice started her own union side labor law firm Law Office of Florice Hoffman L.C.  in 1999 and moved to Orange County in 2001.  Florice’s clients have included the National Union of Healthcare Workers (NUHW), Brotherhood of American Apparel Workers, Teamsters Locals in Southern California, CWA and AFSCME.  Prior to graduating from Rutgers School of Law, Florice was a shop steward for HERE now (UNITE/HERE), an organizer for the International Ladies Garment Workers Union now SEIU Service Workers United and a union organizer for District 65 UAW.

Florice was an officer of the National Lawyers Guild (NLG) in Los Angeles and worked with a number of progressive attorneys to publish a handbook for organizing and representing undocumented workers.

Since moving to Orange County, Florice became active in the Democratic Party of Orange County because of her opposition to the Iraq war.  She has held the positions of Treasurer, Secretary, Vice Chair and Regional Vice Chair. Florice was first elected to the California Democratic Party Executive Board in 2007. She has served 6 years on the CDP credentials committee and became a member of the Voter Services committee in 2015.  Florice is elected Regional Director in 2015. Florice was the Democratic nominee for Congress in 2006 against Ed Royce and ran for Orange Unified School Board in 2008 and 2014. She successively advocated to the CDP that the CDP provide resources for local candidates in Orange County in order to turn and keep Orange County Blue.

Florice has actively fought for women’s reproductive rights and has been endorsed by Planned Parenthood in her congressional race and schoolboard races. She was an outspoken critic of Prop 8 and was targeted for her support for LGBTQ rights and her support for comprehensive sex education in her school board races. In 2011, Florice on behalf of the DPOC attended the Villa Park City Council meeting to condemn Councilmember Deborah Pauly for her anti-Muslim statements. Florice is a supporter of single payer healthcare and living wage ordinances. She is currently actively fighting got protection of workers during a pandemic including PPE, testing, access to vaccinations and hazard pay.

She is the proud mother of Daniel and Gabriel Orea proud openly gay men. Daniel graduated from Pitzer College in earned his masters in bilingual education in Madrid, Spain and recently has worked as filed director in the Georgia Special Election and for Karina Foley in her successful election. Gabriel is a graduate of Berkeley and UCI Law School and is currently working for the Kids In Need of Defense (“KIND”) representing children in immigration proceedings where he is fighting for a union contract for the staff.

*****

Florice is not unopposed.  Former DPOC West Vice Chair Victor Valladares is also running for the position.  He is a known activist and is involved in food banks in Central and West Orange County.  I applaud his work to help underserved communities in his neighborhood, but he’s not prepared to handle the job of a Regional Director.

Being a Regional Director requires considerable time, attention to detail, knowledge of Party bylaws/policies, and good judgement.  Valladares was removed as Vice Chair last year for vulgar criticisms of the party after Senator Bernie Sanders dropped out of the primaries and, frankly, for not doing his job at West Vice Chair.  And now he wants the job that’s several steps up from the one he didn’t do well at all.

So Delegates, the choice is clear.  Re-elect Florice Hoffman.