With former State Sen. Janet Nguyen now sworn in as First District Supervisor on the Orange County Board of Directors, State Senate District 36 voters will now go to the polls to fill the vacant Senate seat.
The office of OC Registrar of Voters’ Bob Page said this week that four candidates have qualified to run in the special election called for Feb. 25.
To qualify for the election, candidates must be a citizen of the USA, be registered to vote, have served not more than 12 years in the State Senate and not be convicted of a felony related to bribery, embezzlement, or similar crimes, according to information released by the Registrar.
State Senate District 36 includes all or portions of the following communities, Cypress, Buena Park, Dana Point, Fountain Valley, Garden Grove, Huntington Beach, Los Alamitos, Laguna Beach, Newport Beach, Santa Ana, Seal Beach, San Clemente, Stanton and Westminster.
The candidates include two Democrats and two Republicans. They are:
- Julie Diep, an Advocate and registered Democrat.
- Jimmy D. Pham, attorney, business owner, and a registered Democrat.
- John Briscoe, a broker and business owner is a registered Republican.
- Troy Strickland, business owner and currently serving on the Huntington Beach City Council, a registered Republican.
- According to OC Vote, the district has about 550,000 voters currently registered as follows:
- 29.8% -Democratic.
- 49.5% -Republican.
- 20.7% -No party preference.
The special election winner will serve the remainder of Nguyen’s Senate term, which ends in December of 2026, the Registrar’s Office said.