(Picture Courtesy of the O.C. Register)
Two Vietnamese candidates won in Orange County this year after all, as Truong Diep and Andrew Do came from behind to win City Council seats in Westminster and Garden Grove respectively.
“The election once again shows the Vietnamese community’s propensity for voting absentee. Diep said his win was a surprise, that he had not known if the absentee ballots sent in by Vietnamese voters could overcome the 1,500-vote margin he was behind by,” according to the L.A. Times.
Westminster will now have a Vietnamese majority on their City Council, if Diep’s win holds up after the recount that has been requested by the runner-up, Peggy Loomer, who used to work for the City of Westminster.
The problem in Westminster is that all of the Vietnamese Council Members are allies of Assemblyman Van Tran. From what I have seen in years past, they tend to mix business with politics. That can’t bode well for the people of Westminster.
As for Do, the former Democrat used to work for the Orange County District Attorney’s office. He is Supervisor Janet Nguyen’s Chief of Staff. But will he be her puppet on the Garden Grove City Council? I am not sure. If anything he is more accomplished than Nguyen. And he is a former Democrat. I am hoping he proves to be his own man. He very well might be the successor to Tran, who is terming out in two years.
Westminster no doubt is going to have a completely Vietnamese City Counci in a few years. I just hope that eventually these local politicians come out from under Van Tran’s thumb.
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