The City Commissioner, An Often Overlooked But Influential Force in Local Government
Government
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Such panels are composed of council-appointed residents and are largely advisory in nature. But don’t underestimate them, some say.
What Will Orange County’s Future Elected Leaders Look Like?
Government
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The redrawing of representation maps will affect local communities’ political power for 10 years.
Smoller and Moodian: Four Takeaways From the 2020 General Election
Community Opinion
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Here are four takeaways pertaining to Orange County from the historic 2020 general election. Vote by Mail Is an Overwhelming Success
Orange County is fortunate to have Neal Kelley as its registrar of voters. Several years ago, Kelley devised the vote center model, but because of resistance from the board of supervisors, he was not able to fully implement it until this year. The registrar of voters mailed ballots to all voters about a month before the election. Voters could mail them back or drop them off in one of the county’s 116 ballot drop boxes.
Orange County in the Midst of Unprecedented Election Mail-in Ballot Wave
Orange County Election 2020
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The “unheard of” early return trend comes amid new controversy over California Republicans’ self-proclaimed “ballot harvesting program” through the use of unofficial ballot collection boxes.
Mainero and Smoller: Response to Wagner
Community Opinion
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Supervisor Don Wagner quibbles with typos and minor details, but fails to acknowledge the big picture about race relations and the Covid-19 crisis. Wagner refuses to address the fact the Board of Supervisors rejected the call to put a discussion of the renaming of John Wayne Airport, an avowed White Supremacist, on the agenda of its July 14 meeting or before voters. Just like Trump, Wagner fails to take responsibility for the County’s failed response to the Covid-19 crisis, which is why virus cases and deaths in Orange County have, since late May and early June, spiraled out of control. The County needs leadership, not political gamesmanship.
Wagner: Mainero and Smoller Can’t Get Their Facts Right
COMMUNITY OPINION
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Professors Mainero and Smoller get basic facts wrong in their effort to impugn county leadership.
Mainero and Smoller: The GOP is Self-Destructing
Community Opinion
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The Chapman professors—one conservative, one progressive—argue that Donald Trump is proudly taking the national and local GOP over a cliff. The president’s exploitation of America’s racial divide and rejection of science is being emulated by Orange County Republican electeds, to their political peril.
Unprecedented OC Election Season Gears Up, Shaped by Social Justice Movements, Public Health Crises
Orange County Election 2020
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The 2020 election was already set to be pivotal; but now it will be further shaped by regional forces like Coronavirus and social protests.
Smoller and Moodian: It’s Time to Rename John Wayne Airport
Community Opinion
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John Wayne’s white supremacist views came to light again when a 1971 interview he did with Playboy magazine went viral in early 2019. As symbols of racial intolerance are taken down across the country, the time has come to rename our airport and remove Wayne’s statue. The actor does not represent our diverse, cosmopolitan community.
OC Shifted Millions from Public Health in Last Decade While Doubling Sheriff Spending
OC Supervisor Spending
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OC sheriff’s deputies now make more than double what the county’s social workers do in median pay and benefits, according to payroll data, a gap that has widened further in recent years.