Irvine City Council, District 1

The incumbent, an attorney elected in 2024 to District 1's first, abbreviated two-year term. She points to opening the district's first community center and library, expanding the Irvine Connect shuttle to ease Northwood High School traffic, pedestrian-safety upgrades citywide, stricter fire standards for new housing, support for small and start-up businesses, accessible housing for young professionals, a new childcare program, and an AAPI-focused senior nutrition program funded privately rather than by the city.

A City of Irvine finance commissioner (its chairman) who has also served as Planning Commissioner and Transportation Commissioner, and a 26-year District 1 resident (first in Northpark, now in Orchard Hills). He is campaigning against what he calls City Hall's "costly pet projects" amid a nearly $50 million deficit he says the city faces within a few years, naming fiscal responsibility, public safety, traffic relief on Culver, hillside fire mitigation, open space and trails, affordability, and educational leadership as his priorities. He says he is endorsed by Orange County Sheriff Don Barnes and "numerous elected officials who serve Irvine and Orange County."

A more-than-three-decade Irvine resident who served two prior terms as Irvine mayor and councilmember, by his own account leading the city through the Great Recession while maintaining balanced budgets without furloughs or service cuts and securing more than $121 million in transportation funding. He most recently served as a Presidential appointee and regional administrator for the U.S. General Services Administration, overseeing federal assets and capital projects across eight states, before returning to seek this council seat. His stated priorities are responsible spending, public safety, public transportation, local businesses, open space, and "thoughtful growth."