{"id":2671,"date":"2026-05-08T14:03:28","date_gmt":"2026-05-08T14:03:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=2671"},"modified":"2026-05-08T14:03:28","modified_gmt":"2026-05-08T14:03:28","slug":"here-are-the-three-candidates-vying-for-oc-board-of-supervisors-district-5-seat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=2671","title":{"rendered":"Here are the three candidates vying for OC Board of Supervisors District 5 seat"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

In a closely watched race for a South County seat on the OC Board of Supervisors, incumbent Katrina Foley is mounting a reelection bid against Assemblywoman Diane Dixon and educator Lucy Vellema.<\/p>\n

Read more Santa Ana set to join cities regulating self-service checkouts<\/a><\/p>\n

The District 5 seat includes Aliso Viejo, Costa Mesa, Dana Point, Laguna Beach, Laguna Hills, Laguna Niguel, Laguna Woods, Newport Beach, San Clemente, San Juan Capistrano, unincorporated areas as far inland as Coto de Caza and Ladera Ranch and parts of Irvine.<\/p>\n

Also:<\/strong> Check out our Orange County Register voter guide.<\/p>\n

Dixon has represented Assembly District 72, which includes portions of the Board of Supervisors\u2019 District 5, since 2022. Prior to that, she served on the Newport Beach City Council for eight years. After four years in Sacramento, Dixon said she decided to run for county government to better serve OC residents who have seen their cost of housing, utilities and daily expenses escalate under Gov. Gavin Newsom\u2019s leadership.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat I\u2019ve learned in Sacramento is a lot of budgetary decisions end up coming down to the local county level for implementation,\u201d said Dixon, a Republican.<\/p>\n

The state\u2019s housing mandates and permit regulations, for example, have increased the cost of building new homes, she said. An advocate for local control over housing, Dixon said she would work with the developer community to loosen permit regulations and increase housing supply in the county.<\/p>\n

A conservative majority on the Board of Supervisors, Dixon said, could form a \u201cvery powerful force\u201d against the Democratic supermajority in the state legislature. With Foley\u2019s election in 2022 alongside Supervisor Vicente Sarmiento, the Board of Supervisors saw its first Democrat majority in decades.<\/p>\n

Touting her three decades of experience as a senior corporate executive, Dixon said she would cut wasteful spending, protect taxpayers and scrutinize every major contract the county enters into.<\/p>\n

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Specifically, Dixon said she would call for a complete audit of county homelessness spending and work with other supervisors to shift resources toward mental health treatment and substance abuse recovery. She said she would also beef up competitive bidding requirements for major county contracts and mandatory public disclosure of discretionary fund spending.<\/p>\n

Foley, who was previously mayor in Costa Mesa, said her constituents face a host of challenges, including the rising costs of living and subpar wages for caregivers. But to address these issues, Foley said, the county needs more money.<\/p>\n

For her second term, she said her priority would be to create an economic development plan, working with the county\u2019s chief real estate officer, CEO and CFO to identify and develop underused county parcels to generate more general fund revenue that can be invested into services for residents.<\/p>\n

At the moment, 89% of the county\u2019s $10 billion budget is tied to mandated state and federal services, Foley said, leaving only about $150 million for the general fund budget.<\/p>\n

Read more Judge to rule Friday whether Charlie Kirk murder case can be filmed, photographed<\/a><\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

\u201cOrange County has a very strong economy, but the county itself has been passive in how we manage our assets,\u201d she said. \u201cWithout revenue, we can\u2019t do any of these other things we care about, whether that\u2019s housing, improving our infrastructure, getting more sand on beaches or caring for our most vulnerable.\u201d<\/p>\n

At the same time, Foley said she wants to push the board to seek more grants from Orange County delegates in higher levels of government.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe taxpayers of Orange County are helping to fund a lot of California, a lot America,\u201d Foley said, referring to the county\u2019s high tax rates. \u201cIt\u2019s time we get our money back into the county so we can invest in essential services, our infrastructure needs and clean oceans.\u201d<\/p>\n

Vellema, a teacher and school counselor in the Westminster School District, said District 5 communities confront challenges related to homelessness, public safety and transportation, among others. But the crisis that dwarfs them all for her, she said, is the \u201crampant abuse\u201d of children and seniors seen in the family court system.<\/p>\n

A first-time candidate and a Republican, Vellema said she decided to run for office following her own experiences in family court and the growing calls she\u2019s heard for reform and oversight of the county\u2019s judicial system. A grassroots reform group launched recall petitions in February against six probate and family court judges over child safety and due process concerns, she noted.<\/p>\n

To hold judges and attorneys accountable, Vellema said she\u2019ll push for audiovisual footage and transcripts to be made available in the courtroom, in addition to establishing a task force to investigate reports of abuse. She would also direct funding to mental health services, particularly long-term therapeutic services for families.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs an educator and mom, protecting my kids and students have been my No. 1 priority,\u201d Vellema said. \u201cI want to try and make a difference.\u201d<\/p>\n

In regards to housing and homelessness, she said progress has been made, \u201chowever, more housing expansion and accountability needs to be implemented to ensure that funding is appropriately being funneled towards these projects. Now more than ever, we need accountability with public funding and to expand housing for the homeless and low-income families.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Board of Supervisors, the county\u2019s five-member governing body, oversees a budget of nearly $11 billion and 18,000 employees across various departments, including public health, public safety, social services, animal care and public works.<\/p>\n

Unless one candidate garners more than 50% of votes in the June 2 primary to outright win the seat, the top two vote-getters will move on to the November general election ballot. Though the board is a nonpartisan governing body, Republicans hold a slight voter registration edge in District 2.<\/p>\n

Read more How cars, trucks and motorcycles should navigate bus-bike lanes at intersections<\/a><\/p>\n

Ballots were mailed to all registered voters earlier this week.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In a closely watched race for a South County seat on the OC Board of Supervisors, incumbent Katrina Foley is mounting a reelection bid against Assemblywoman Diane Dixon and educator Lucy Vellema.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2670,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[19,2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2671","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-facts","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\nHere are the three candidates vying for OC Board of Supervisors District 5 seat - Silicon Valley Moving Post<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=2671\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Here are the three candidates vying for OC Board of Supervisors District 5 seat - 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