ORANGE COUNTY, CA – Today Dave Min secured the California Democratic Party (CDP) pre-endorsement. Orange County has a long, demonstrated history of electing Democratic Congressmembers who did not receive the CDP endorsement. In 2018, every candidate who earned the CDP endorsement lost in the primary election, including Min.
Community organizer and attorney Joanna Weiss has built a broad coalition of support across Orange County and California, including those who know the district best, including Congresswoman Linda Sánchez, Former Congressman Harley Rouda, Assemblywoman Cottie Petrie-Norris, Supervisor Katrina Foley, Orange County Young Democrats, and grassroots activists in Seal Beach, Huntington Beach, Newport Beach, Laguna Beach, Costa Mesa, and Irvine.
Weiss has raised over $1 million from individual donors and has the most grassroots donors. Weiss also has the most cash on hand of the Democratic field and is the top nonincumbent woman fundraiser in the country.
(Editor’s factcheck: Federal Election Commission documents show Weiss has raised $951,939.77, not over $1 million; for the last reporting period, Weiss had 1,370 individual contributions. Weiss has a $7,095.86 cash on hand advantage over Min which is hardly worth bragging about when you consider she had loaned her own campaign $225,000; Min has not loan his campaign a penny.)
“This is a proxy-driven process that rewards party insiders, not the strongest candidate. We are confident that voters will reject Dave Min, just like they did when he had the CDP endorsement in 2018,” said campaign manager Emma Weinert. “This endorsement means nothing unless voters back your campaign, and voters know Min is a liability come November 2024. Based on the groundswell of grassroots and fundraising support surrounding Joanna, we are confident the voters will conclude that Joanna Weiss is the best candidate to beat Scott Baugh. We look forward to carrying our message forward with the voters of the 47th Congressional District.”
(Editor’s note: Katie Porter still endorses Dave Min for Congress in this seat)
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Joanna is a former litigator and Adjunct Professor at Chapman University School of Law where she taught courses on Pre-Trial Civil Procedure and Public Interest Lawyering. Joanna served on the Board of Directors of the Public Law Center for over a decade, winning multiple awards for her legal and community leadership.
As founder of Women for American Values and Ethics (WAVE), Joanna has activated over 2,300 activists to donate over 50,000 volunteer hours, register over 10,000 students, and raise millions to support candidates and causes in Orange County, CA.
Born and raised in Orange County, Joanna attended Capistrano Valley High School and Saddleback College, graduated from UCLA, and received her JD from USC School of Law. Joanna and her husband Jason love to surf, hike, and volunteer with their children Leah, Will, and Audrey.
(Editor’s note: Capistrano Valley High School and Saddleback College are both in Mission Viejo; the Weiss family has resided in San Juan Capistrano since 2015 after having a previous residence in Newport Beach. The Weiss campaign has not responded to questions about the candidate’s planned summer move into the 47th district for months.)