A debate over two ballot measures created one of the most public displays yet of a city council divide over what “saving your community” looks like in a working-class and Latino city.
Author Archives: Brandon Pho
As a Voice of OC reporter, Brandon Pho covered north/central Orange County, as well as broader regional issues around law enforcement, transportation, the environment, the OC Fair and Little Saigon.
He joined in 2018 as an intern, shedding light on turmoil and corruption claims in Westminster and uncovering a now-fired OC Fair executive’s suspect fundraising relationship with a nearby, private Christian college that the Fair had sponsored with public money.
Later, he published a number of investigative stories on local law enforcement agencies; detailed political jockeying around a controversial seawater desalting plant proposal in Huntington Beach; narrated a racial reckoning inside one of the county’s largest school districts; and tracked various quality of life issues across the region.
Before Voice of OC, Brandon worked as a reporter and editor at Cal State Fullerton’s independent student newspaper, the Daily Titan, and won a number of accolades for his reporting in 2018, including a 1st and 2nd place Los Angeles Press Club award and 1st place national College Media Association award.
While at Voice of OC, Brandon was a member of Report for America, a national network of local reporters committed to bolstering democracy throughout the U.S.
Posted inPolitics & Elections
Two OC Cities on Track to Put Two Opposite Voting Eligibility Questions Before Voters
Santa Ana leaders are looking to allow noncitizens to vote in local elections, while Huntington Beach considers voter ID laws.
Posted inNewport Beach
Remembering Orange County’s Environmental Matriarch
Newport Beach resident Jean Watt lives on in the open space she saved and the beaches she kept clean.
Posted inSanta Ana
After City Hall Shakeup, Where Does Santa Ana City Hall Go From Here?
Amidst top City Hall departures, police union lawsuits, a divided council, and an upcoming recall election, is City Hall headed into new political territory or repeating history?
Posted inGovernment
Santa Ana City Manager Follows Police Chief Out the Door Amidst Lawsuits and Recall Election
It all comes in the middle of police union-driven City Council divide and an upcoming November recall election of a police union critic, Jessie Lopez – one funded by $463,000 in police union political spending.
Posted inSafety, Security & Justice
Santa Ana Arrested Hundreds of Intoxicated People Within a Month
The increase in arrests come after a majority of council members – along with scores of residents – have voiced concerns of a drug crisis in town.
Posted inHousing & Homelessness
A Battle For Orange County’s Only Citywide Rent Control Ordinance
An effort to protect Santa Ana’s rent control laws led to charges of impropriety – and a rare public rebuke of council members by the City Attorney.
Posted inEducation
Lawsuit Claims OC Board of Education Member Failed to Disclose $14 Million in Income
A retired federal judge has brought civil action against the Board of Education Trustee Mari Barke for allegedly failing to report millions in come.
Posted inSanta Ana
Two Years After Brandon Lopez Shooting, Santa Ana Family Still Demands Answers
A Santa Ana City Council member and his family are questioning whether Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office is sitting on their loved one’s case.
Posted inHealth & Wellness
California’s CARE Court: A Limited System or a Path to Institutionalization?
While disability rights advocates warn CARE Court is one phase of California’s retreat into forced treatment, county health officials say that the system – in Orange County – will be totally voluntary.
