I stopped by a fundraiser for La Habra City Council candidate Daren Nigsarian (pictured above, at left) yesterday, while on the way to the Grover Cleveland Association Dinner that O.C. Register editorial writer Steven Greenhut puts on about once a quarter.
My wife and I used to live in La Habra many years ago, when we first got married. And I used to work with La Habra Mayor Rose Espinoza (pictured above, at right) when we both were on Neighborhood Housing Services boards, in La Habra and Santa Ana. So I was not exactly a stranger to La Habra – but I have not been following La Habra politics whatsoever.
This year’s La Habra City Council election features eight candidates vying for three seats. Talk about musical chairs!
“Incumbents Rose Espinoza and Tom Beamish will seek to retain their seats. A third seat is open due to the death in January of Councilman Steve Anderson. Other candidates include: Tim Shaw, a teacher; Daren Nigsarian, a L.A. County deputy sheriff; Michael Shapiro, a computer systems administrator; Robert Ortega, a businessman; Larry Dobkin, a business owner, and Louie Contreras, a businessman,” according to the O.C. Register.
Shaw is a Republican who used to work for O.C. Supervisor Janet Nguyen. Apparently he has run a couple of times previously and is giving it a go again this year.
Nigsarian’s party attracted all the major Democratic donors in north Orange County, including Paul Goldenberg (pictured above), the “King of TV’s,” who owns Paul’s TV and Video in La Habra.
And Assemblyman Jose Solorio showed up too. I joked with him when he got there that Nigsarian was roasting an anteater. Poor Jose, who is a vegetarian, didn’t know what to say, so he replied that anteaters are nice. Solorio is an alumnus of UCI, whose mascot is an anteater, and he has ben helping the Santa Ana Zoo to put up a giant anteater exhibit.
Nigsarian served Asian food to his guests and the party had a Hawaiian theme, which went well with his beautiful home. My friend the Planner and I didn’t eat though as we headed to the Grover Cleveland Association Dinner, where we enjoyed Grover’s favorite food – sausuages. More on that meeting in a subsequent post…
You can find out more about Nigsarian at this link. He seems to have a lot of friends and appears well on his way to becoming a City Council member. As an L.A. Sheriff he has a built-in advantage over the other candidates, in terms of his ballot designation.
La Habra has a lot of issues to contend with, so if Nigsarian gets elected he is going to have his hands full. La Habra could end up becoming a major enclave of the Democratic Party of Orange County particularly as Latinos make up a good portion of their population. As such this race is one we will keep an eye on here at the Orange Juice.
I met Nigsarian a couple weeks ago, he’s a really smart and funny guy. He has Debbie Cook’s endorsement too.
Tim Shaw is not really a teacher. He is Bob Huff’s field director. Too bad no one has the money to challenge his ballot designation. It would be nice is the DPOC had more resources.
Too bad no one has the money to challenge his ballot designation.
And yet, I see… the King of TV’s above! Maybe this would be a fitting use for some of his dough? A rich Republican sure would!
Paul Goldenberg No longer owns Pauls TV.
a few problems….
Shaw has run once, not “a couple of times”. Unlike Rose Espinoza, who ran three times before winning.
Shaw is a teacher at Rio Hondo College, so it is pointless to attack his ballot designation.
Shaw is Vice Chair of the Community Services Commission with endorsements from Councilman Tom Beamish, Jim Gomez and other high-rankings from the area.
Bush carried La Habra by 16%. Nigsarian’s idea of running as a hard-core Dem in this city may prove his undoing.
I’m voting Nisarian & Shaw, time for new blood!