SD34 Candidate Janet Nguyen
Republican Janet Nguyen won’t be picking up any more financial support from Sacramento’s “Third House” — those lobbyists and campaign funders who were interested in this Orange County race that was considered easier to win than others which the GOP will be fighting for.
Information shared with us this a.m. puts the bundlers and power brokers in a position to have a greater interest in the re-election of Republican Anthony Cannella (SD12, Modesto) and the Andy Vidak Senate race for the new 14th District (Hanford). These are their choices now, and apparently no others are worthwhile or affordable to contest. Nguyen’s campaign is clued into the resistance and recently attacked the OC Employees Association and the union-funded Voice of OC for reporting on her receipt of union money for what’s to become a tough campaign in 2014.
Former Assemblyman Jose Solorio will surely be her Democrat opponent unless Nguyen sees a primary challenge next June. Unfortunately, that seems unlikely as former Republican Assemblyman Jim Silva appears happy in a Palm Springs retirement and would not oppose her unless she were to drop out — not necessarily an impossibility given Nguyen’s adventures with CalOptima and her campaign financing that the FBI’s investigating here, here, here, here and here. This has not gone unnoticed in Sacramento and we understand the Third House is more than tired of it, and her.
We understand an active search is underway for another candidate, but as we polled last month, no
Van Tran to choose BOE over a Senate run
Photo: OC Register
one’s yet coming up viable. Matthew Harper, an HB Councilman, wouldn’t run against his ex-boss and benefactor since she got him his job with the OC Trash Agency as their PR shill (for all his real estate and DUI experience). And while we’ve always liked Westminster’s Long Pham, he’s never been able to generate enough cash or support. Our best pick, former Assemblyman Van Tran, chooses to run for the Board of Equalization and will announce shortly. AD72’s Travis Allen won’t be leaving his safe seat, won in a landslide, while he establishes himself with the GOP who wrongly believed he couldn’t win in 2012.
Without substantial funding and with the FBI on her back, Nguyen’s chances against Solorio are bleak. Despite his losses to Kindee Durkee, Solorio can easily raise one to two million more per our sources, and be supported by double or triple that from IEs via the union support he’s guaranteed.
Nguyen’s financial support is reportedly “drying up”, and it’s now up to Senator Bob Huff and the Republican leadership to deal with her and the strong potential of the loss of a Senate Seat that’s been held by the GOP for decades. But, that leadership has been lacking, and this impotent minority is deceiving itself if it believes Orange County Supervisor Nguyen’s legal problems won’t be an issue that the Democrats will use as a hammer to ensure she instead finishes her Supervisorial term and then moves on to full-time parenthood.
This is not true. SD34 will be targeted, regardless of Republican candidate, in 2014. Democrats need a win in one of the three (SD12, SD14, or SD34) races to maintain the supermajority in the upper house. Conversely, Republicans need to win all three.
Of the three, yes, SD34 is probably the easiest for Dems, but Republicans are still slight favorites in the district, even with candidate issues.
There will be plenty of money to fight it out in all three, and there’s no route for Republicans to block Democrats from the supermajority that does not go through SD34.
The GOP better find a decent candidate then. Janet Nguyen is a train wreck.