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Happy Halloween, SanTana! Just in CASE you haven’t cast your votes yet in the special Council election, Zorro thought he’d write up a little profile of each of the four major candidates – don’t forget Tuesday’s the last day to vote! Here at the Orange Juice we like Manny Escamilla the best and Phil “the Beaver” Bacerra the least … but check out Zorro’s profiles and make up your own minds!
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Beatriz Mendoza
The first candidate I’ll profile is Beatriz Mendoza. Beatriz or “Bea” is a long time Santa Ana resident who has a good amount of political experience. She is currently a Victim Assistance Specialist at the Zero Abuse Project. She has also served as the chief of staff for California LULAC and also worked for different politicians including Joe Dunn and was on the Santa Ana planning commission. Beatriz is well known among local political circles and is trying her best to become part of the OC Dem political machine.
Beatriz has also run for office in 2016. She attempted to get elected to school board but finished dead last right under her friend, Bruce Bauer. Beatriz seems to have a decent deal of support, particularly from the Democratic Party of Orange County (DPOC) who endorsed her earlier this year. The DPOC has made some blunderous endorsements in Santa Ana, so I really don’t see that as a plus on their part.
When it comes to the issues, Beatriz prioritizes rent stabilization, homelessness, public safety, and response time. These are all cookie-cutter issues that nearly everyone is addressing in their platforms. I do believe that rent stabilization is a huge problem in Santa Ana and would like her to push for local improvements on the recent state law if she is elected. It would help to control increasing homeless problem. Her main angle is that of an advocate for women and children who have gone thru abuse. My guess is that she thinks this will give her an edge against Phil Becerra, who was accused of domestic violence by an ex-partner and subsequently had his Democratic Party candidate endorsement pulled during the last election.
The two also sparred earlier in the election regarding her candidate description. The two sparred over Phil’s challenge of her candidate statement. This was a cheap shot in my opinion, and Beatriz triumphed on it. If elected, I don’t see anything special coming from Beatriz. I believe she’ll be supportive of some progressive issues but I doubt she’ll take any political risks. In my opinion she will just be another cog in the machine.
Campaigning with Roman Reyna and David B.
Beatriz has an uphill battle in this race given her election record and money. A look into her expenditures reveals that she hasn’t raised as much money as her main opponents, Manny Escamilla and Phil Bacerra. She has a fair number of signs and banners around the city, but she doesn’t seem to have a large crew of folks putting them up or the money to pay for someone to do it for her. She’s also complained a lot on FB that some have gone missing or that she’s had to remove some from city property. Aside from big busy streets like Bristol, Edinger, etc. you don’t see many Beatriz lawn signs on actual lawns. This is an indicator that she is not walking precincts very hard. I also haven’t seen any mailers from her or pictures of her walking precincts outside of the ‘Big Walk’ the Democratic Party had last week (though it looks like she’s been campaigning harder in the last couple weeks. Her Facebook page has events for phone banking and precinct walking.)
One thing that concerns me about Beatriz is her block rate on Facebook. She has a reputation for blocking anyone who disagrees with her. I expect open dialogue and civil discourse from a candidate, not a #blockingbeatriz. Anyone is free to do what they want with their social media but this habit of hers has given people pause. Will she shut out the public in the same way if she’s elected?
Like many of her opponents, she’ll also have to contend with a split Democratic vote in the election. As of now the Republicans seem to favor Phil Bacerra and the Dems seem to be split between her, Manny, and Jennifer. Adding to the difficulty is that Republicans have come out in force during this election – as of the writing of this article Republicans have returned more absentee ballots than the Dems which should help Bacerra if anyone.
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Jennifer Oliva
The young Jennifer Oliva is a Santa Ana Arts Commissioner, business woman, and part time lecturer at Cal State Los Angeles. It is unclear what business she runs but is likely a consultant. She is a lifelong resident of Santa Ana and a Salvadoran-American, which is not common in Santa Ana. On the surface she appears to be a good candidate. She has a good education background, some political experience as a commissioner, and has roots in the city.
Jennifer’s issues are economic development, city infrastructure, and community outreach. I like her ideas of creating incentives for Santa Ana residents who want to open small businesses in the city and youth outreach. I haven’t seen any comments from her about the homelessness crisis, but then that’s a bigger problem in the Central and Downtown areas than it is in mostly suburban Ward 4. It is something I would like to see her address, along with more visible positions on development.
She is for the most part a political outsider. She does not have a whole lot of support from the political parties and other traditional institutions, so at least she won’t have any quid pro qho attached to her actions if she’s elected. Jennifer does seem to have a good amount of support from residents. Her lawn signs have been seen on actual lawns unlike those of some of her opponents. She is actively campaigning her ward but hasn’t raised nearly the same amount of money Escamilla and Bacerra have.
Here is the HUGE RED FLAG on Jennifer Oliva. She has received support from the Santa Ana Police Association (union) in the form of an independent expenditure fund called, “Santa Ana Families Supporting Oliva for City Council 2019.” This should alarm every voter regardless of political affiliation. Santa Ana’s police have demonstrated they don’t care if they bankrupt Santa Ana as long as they get a raise. The Santa Ana POA are the biggest union bosses in Santa Ana and have shown themselves to be a ruthless entity with deep pockets in Santa Ana politics. The POA is using $10,000 to support Oliva. Political races cost money, but I do believe Oliva made a mistake on this. She is quoted in a recent article in the Voice of OC saying that she was unaware of the IE. Anyone who receives support from the Santa Ana POA automatically loses my vote even if also they claim to advocate for youth.
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Separated at birth? Phil Bacerra, and beaver.
Former planning commissioner Phil Baccera is hoping to shake off public humiliation and defeat from last year’s Ward 4 election. Phil is a business owner who ran in the last election with the support of the Democratic Party. This endorsement was pulled after domestic violence accusations from an ex-partner surfaced. He was not legally convicted or even found guilty by an internal Democratic Party investigation; however the wifebeater accusations were serious enough to pull his endorsement.
After his decisive electoral loss, Phil filed a lawsuit accusing Roman Reyna of not living in the ward when he filed running papers. Reyna now has to pay $578,000 in restitution and is banned from running for office. (This is what led to this special election we’re discussing.)
Phil is not a favorite among most Democrats or progressives, but the Republicans seem to like him just fine. He was on the Santa Ana Planning Commission for 5 years – one of the main stepping stones for Santa Ana elected hopefuls. During this time, he built many relationships with small business owners who are now supporting him. He also enjoys the endorsements of the Firefighters and Building Trades council.
One thing’s for sure, Phil is campaigning hard to be elected. Walk down almost any street in Washington Square, Floral Park, or Park Santiago, and you’ll see plenty of Phil Bacerra lawn signs. This is an indicator that he is walking these neighborhoods hard. These areas are not in Ward 4, but they do have the highest historical voter turnout of almost all areas in Santa Ana. He is also paying for web advertising. He already has name recognition, although some of it is obviously negative and synonymous with domestic abuse among voters.
Count Chocula. Another possible window into understanding Phil?
Phil’s issues are also cookie-cutter issues. He says he wants to take on the homeless crisis, address parking issues, and bring “transparency “to city politics. His campaign literature also says that he wants to clear the homeless from North Santa Ana. The question here is: where would they go? Many of his critics argue that he is simply going to move homeless folks away from these well-heeled neighborhoods and into more working-class neighborhoods of central Santa Ana. In respect to transparency, I do commend him on launching the Reyna lawsuit even if it was mainly in the spirit of “sour grapes.” (I am also no fan of Reyna.)
Aside from the fact he resembles a beaver, I don’t find anything funny about Phil. He has outspent his closest rival, Manny Escamilla, by almost double. He also has support from an independent expenditure fund called ‘Santa Ana Neighborhood, Public Safety, Business, Labor and Education Leaders Supporting Phil Bacerra for City Council 2019’. That PAC is made of funds from the California Realtors Association, Carpenter’s Union, and Plaster’s Union. That should alarm rent control advocates as these entities are historically pro-development, which is code for pro-gentrification. I don’t see a lot of his activity in the ward he is actually running to represent, but he has plenty of action in North Santa Ana. This is something to seriously question if you live in Ward 4. It should make you wonder whose interests he really cares about.
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Manny Escamilla
Manny Escamilla is a first-time runner for political office and has made quite a stir both online and in the community during this City Council race. Manny has been an urban planner and archivist and has an intimate knowledge of the city’s inner workings. He is the only candidate who has worked directly for the city.
His campaign has been highlighted in the OC Weekly and is very heavily driven by social media and precinct walking. Manny’s social media campaigning is hard to ignore. He is clearly the most popular candidate online. If ‘likes’ were counted as votes he would be on his way to a landslide win. His Facebook has over 1000 followers and his Instagram page is over 1000. He reminds one of what Ned Flanders would look like if he were Mexican. His trademark sweaters and glasses make him instantly recognizable.
“Hi diddly ho neighborinos!”
He seems to be someone who is willing to understand how to work well with city entities as well as consituents to find common ground. Manny also has the clearest ideas on how to handle Santa Ana’s homeless crisis. His take on the homeless crisis makes common sense. Job placement, permanent housing, and increased services to get people back on their feet. It’s a lot better than Bacerra’s plan to push the homeless out of North Santa Ana into everyone else’s neighborhood. I like his idea about changing the rules for the Housing Opportunity Ordinance to make it more accessible. I believe the Dems made a mistake in not endorsing Manny as he is clearly sharper, better financed, and his campaign is better organized than Beatriz Mendoza’s.
In Zorro’s opinion, Manny is clearly the bigger threat to edge out Phil Bacerra, especially if Republicans vote his way. The Dems are split up and that doesn’t work for any of them. Despite this being a non-partisan race, these things always come into play. Escamilla could very well win this election. He is walking precincts on a daily basis and his signs can be seen on lawns throughout the city, not just certain areas like Bacerra, or only on main city streets like Mendoza. If he loses it would be a shame for all of Santa Ana and I would love to see him run again.
Zoro!!,
Beatriz Mendoza,is exactly what Santa Ana needs… someone with her passion and her willingness to stand up and speak for others,’Bea’ Will listen to her constituents and vote for their interest unlike the present Council and certainly that mayor, Santa Ana, will be lucky to have Beatriz Mendoza on the City Council, a true champion of the working people and for those who suffer from abuse and violence YES! definitely the voters of Santa Ana should elect ‘Mendoza’ on November 5th…
Mark, your ‘champion’ openly said she opposes rent control. #blockingbeatriz is hardly the right choice. If elected, I don’t expect her to do anything special. Her pics also look like a bad 80’s revlon commercial.
You forgot to mention that Garden Grove Phil Bacerra, in addition to beating his ex-girlfriend, also has alcohol issues which might explain his violent tendencies. The Police Officers are supporting Toxic Masculinity Phil too.
Not true. The POA is supporting Jennifer Oliva, just as the article stated.
You are lying, which is not a surprise, Go look at PAC $. DUI Phil has their support.
“Bad 80’s Revlon commercial”
How soon we forget. The hypocrites who supported Roman now insist Bea is the answer. I don’t trust any endorsement from anyone.
I agree, they are all part of the same cabal. Trying to manufacture who gets what positions and playing musical chairs with elected offices. This is why I think Santa Ana needs people outside of the OC Dem circles to get elected. Someone who doesn’t owe anything to anyone.
Hey, Vern! That’s not my eye. I don’t wear fake eyelashes. Nor am I wrinkly like that. I’m not saying having wrinkles is bad but that certainly isn’t me. If you ever need a photo, let me know. Saw you at Los amigos last Weds. & you didn’t even ask.
Thanks Mark, you are amazing. Love you amigo. And how mean for people to criticize personal profile pics. I would never say what I think about Vern’s looks or pictures. Or anyone’s, no need to. BTW, I don’t ever photoshop my photos. Maybe people should look at the campaign website or campaign Facebook for pics…
I’ve been a two term delegate with CADEM and was a young Democrat. I’ve fine so much for the party and for my people. I think they central committee did the right choice. They heard our speeches and voted.
Hey, CQT96, what’s up? Thanks for taking time to comment. I won’t say anything (really, nothing) about you. But hey, kids are fine. They are spending time with me at home. Free school day and mommy requested the day off weeks ago. Have a great weekend everyone.
I’m not Zorro, and I didn’t pick the pictures. (Except for the Count Chocula one.) But if Zorro’s right and you oppose rent control, then I agree that Manny is the better candidate.
But hey, at least you’re not Phil!
There, replaced the “eye” picture with one of you campaigning with Roman Reyna and David Benavides.
BTW you guys need real district elections over there, it’s messed up that people from Washington Square, Floral Park, and Park Santiago are choosing the representative for Ward 4.
I know, it hasn’t been a magic bullet for Anaheim, but it gave us a fighting chance. The special interests had to spend four times as much in 2018 to keep us down.
We actually are moving to Ward specific elections but that won’t take place until 2020. This will be the last at large election.
So: three plausibly decent candidates vs. Phil Bacerra. That means that Bacerra wins — possibly without a single Democratic vote. ALWAYS run a second Republican in a first-past-the-post race.
As for the DPOC endorsement: if they had to endorse at all, it should have been for the candidate who would do best without the endorsement, so that they would have the best challenger to Bacerra. Then again, some people in DPOC really *like* Bacerra (as they do other Republican Lite options on the political menu), so if Beatriz is really not as competitive as Manny this smells like a way to sabotage Manny to help Bacerra. (That’s why they wouldn’t have Bacerra seek the endorsement: he’d have prevented Beatriz from getting the supermajority required.) This suggests to me that Zorro is right that Manny is the stronger candidate — and so unless Beatriz wants to be the spoiler who lets Bacerra in she should drop out and throw her support to Manny. She’ll get elected to something soon enough, but it won’t be this. All she can accomplish is keeping Manny out. (Yes, that sucks, which is why we need a different voting system from “plurality wins.”)
On the bright side, if Bacerra ends up on the Council, with the degree of self-serving from the Pulido faction (in which he’ll fit nicely), he’ll either have to show exceptional self-control or else end up worse off than Reyna.
(Note to Beatriz: if your lawyer is not getting a whole gob of legal fees for the election law case, have them talk to me.)
There is one candidate this post ignored. The only actual Republican in the race. That is Bishop Gayle Oliver, at https://www.facebook.com/bishopgoministries/.
I do agree thought that this race is Bacerra’s to lose. The rest of the Dems are splitting the left-wing votes. That is a formula for disaster.
Can she win, or has Bacerra got all of the Republicans?
First, it is concerning that so many NON-SANTANA residents are involved. The POA, however self serving does have “skin in the game”. Phil has spoken about how Beatriz commented once about bringing “her people”, whatever that means.
Next, what has Phil done that is so terrible? He was right about the crooked cabal that was Sal, David and Roman. He was right about Roman’s lies. He was right all along about Pulido. But, now he’s being dismissed as a GOP plant.
As for Beatriz dropping out, the guy who suggeted that needs to take an elections 101 class. There is no more SURE FIRE way to elect Baccerra. The ballots are out there, and a vote for a “ghost candidate” is just that.
Here’s an idea, ditch the “activist” BS. Elect someone who can govern.
Dear Dork,
This site is for people who care about politics beyond their own borders, because our concerns transcend them. Thanks for your “concern,” but we’re staying that way.
Having “skin in the game” is no entitlement to the power to impose policies upon people without pushback — even if it has to come from outside of the district. Pulido has had “skin in the game.” Criminals have “skin in the game.” The argument is not that the police don’t have “skin in the game,” but that that doesn’t matter — and when someone is trying to corrupt the system, can actually be worse.
Bacerra fits in with the OCTAX crowd that includes an unfortunate number of Democrats and sees the “ability govern” as handing out subsidies to (direct or indirect) contributors who promise to create jobs — a trickledown theory that rarely proves effective. That makes him pretty much a GOP plant. Other accusations against him paint him in even worse terms than that.
But: if you want to quote the things that Bacerra has said that prove that he was “right” about Pulido (I wonder what you consider “right”) and right about a “corrupt cabal” that includes Sal Tinajero — whom I don’t recall ever being credibly accused of corruption, then go ahead and put them here, along with the links.
Lots of people had already voted as of yesterday. Plenty haven’t. Plenty — though not as much as used to be — won’t vote until Election Day. So yes, her dropping out could have a positive impact (from my perspective, not yours) of making sure someone beats Bacerra, IF — as may not be the case, but from what I’ve now seen and heard seems pretty likely — Manny Escamilla has the better shot at beating him. The more I think about the DPOC endorsements, the more it seems to me that the most likely way that it would have won is if Phil’s (few) supporters wanted Beatriz endorsed so as to help Phil and hurt Manny. That’s a strong argument that Phil’s supporters see Manny as the greater threat. I make no negative judgment at all about Beatriz except that she’s being used to split the vote from the left. If she doesn’t believe me (yet), she’ll just be the latest in a long line of people who put their hope and ambition ahead of achieving a good result. She’s doesn’t seem like a vendida, but she is helping a vendido win.
By the way, given that you’re an obvious Bacerra supporter, your telling me that if I don’t do as you say than Bacerra will win is not particularly convincing.
I gather that, from the point of view of this “Jorge,” Phil being “right about Pulido” means Phil accepting that Pulido is a formidable politician with whom he should make an alliance and trade support, and beyond that, a great and wise Leader.
Most of us do not see Pulido that way.
LMFAO, looks like someone got triggered by the truth! That ‘victory’ party is gonna be a sad event.
*OK, not knowing anything much about Santa Ana politics, except they do or used to have a Sports team called the Don’s……well, Bea looks like the most interesting choice. How does this work? Do the voters get the top two, three or just one for their vote? We just really love Joe Dunn and that is what we would put our stock in…just on the face of it. But then, we are South County Uncarpetbaggies!
Politics are fun to talk about because of the inherent conflict.
Governance is boring because it takes patience and understanding.
Santa Ana has a serious, permanent, structural budget deficit that has been dealt with by increased taxes that went right into the police union’s pockets. Who is going to address this honestly?
Santa Ana is a diverse and incredible home for many many cultures. Which of these candidates has spoken and shared the need to address the needs of do many. Which has said education instead of incarceration? Or addressing the issues between the police and the community? Or The need for housing, controlled rents, controlled cost to sustain those lower rents.. like controlling city tax’s on rentals, stopping outrageous insurance hikes they enforce on rentals…
Who talked about helping the community deal with ICE and still abiding with the laws of SA. And which One had the guts to talk about Gentrification by housing and employment…
Elections are not popularity contest. These people are applying for a job our hard earned money is paying for.
So, to all candidates, forget the class size bologna, the tax help and what ever you promise..
Let me ask ‘ Why do you want this job? Why do you Want yo work fir me and finally, what will you bring yo the table? And by the way, please provide at least 50 non related references from people In Your community that will verify, your the right person for the job!