What do county supervisors do?

The five county supervisors are some of the most powerful people in Orange County, deciding about $9 billion in spending each year on key government services like public health, mental health, law enforcement and child protective services.

They oversee much of the social safety net that handles health care for O.C.’s most vulnerable residents. They control how much funding goes to key law enforcement agencies — like the Sheriff’s Department and District Attorney’s Office— and can influence how it’s spent. They’re also the bosses of public health officials and can have a major impact on things like mask requirements during a pandemic and how much information — or how little — the public gets. And whether that information is accurate.

Many former county supervisors have moved on to state or federal office after their time on the board — including U.S. Reps. Michelle Steel and Lou Correa, District Attorney Todd Spitzer, former U.S. Ambassador and Peace Corps Director Gaddi Vasquez and former state Sen. John Moorlach.

If you live in an unincorporated part of Orange County — like North Tustin, Ladera Ranch, Rossmoor, Orange Park Acres and the canyon communities — the Board of Supervisors works essentially as your city council. That means the supervisors control local laws and oversee services like roads, police services, trash pickup and development.

You can find a map of all the unincorporated communities here.

There also are many areas where supervisors set policy and decide on spending across the entire county, including in the incorporated cities. They include:

• Jails, juvenile detention and probation
• Child protective services and foster care
• Social services
• Mental health services
• Public health, particularly the pandemic response (none of O.C.’s cities have their own health department)
• Sheriff’s Department budget, staff pay, service contracts and jail expansion 
• District Attorney’s Office budget, staff pay, service contracts and whether or not to investigate alleged misconduct

Each supervisor has a lot of authority to do what they want in their district with county resources. County officials call it “district prerogative,” where the full board defers to individual supervisors when it comes to their district.

Their role in transportation, homelessness, housing

The supervisors have a powerful role in overseeing transportation in Orange County. That includes how — and how much — to invest in freeway projects, major roads, buses, trains and bike lanes. All five supervisors are on the governing board of the Orange County Transportation Authority, which decides on transportation funding and projects for highways and public transit. That includes whether to cut bus service and whether to add toll lanes on the 405 Freeway.

The supervisors also oversee the main funding for homeless services and shelters in Orange County, including which nonprofit groups do much of this work and to what extent they’re held accountable for services. Additionally, the supervisors play a major role in how much — or how little — homelessness funding the county seeks in state and federal grants for things like converting motels into permanent supportive housing. (There was controversy about that a few years ago.) Each individual effectively decides how much shelter and housing for unhoused people is created in their district with federal and state grants that flow through the county.

When it comes to housing, county supervisors can choose whether to work with leaders of the county’s 34 cities to address the housing crisis — a type of collaboration some supervisors have pushed back on in years past. The supervisors also decide whether to approve new home developments in unincorporated areas, which is where most of O.C.’s undeveloped land is. That’s been controversial in recent years, including their approval of hundreds of homes in hills that frequently burn in wildfires.

District boundaries

Supervisors are elected to four-year terms and can serve for up to two terms consecutively. After that, they can’t run for a third consecutive term. But the limits only apply to consecutive terms. So former supervisors can run again if they have a gap in time on the board.

The current district boundaries went into effect in early 2022 and are available here:

You might recognize the supervisors’ work from …

COVID: County supervisors took on a high-profile role during the coronavirus pandemic — influencing whether the county had a mask mandate and overseeing the public health response, mass testing sites, and weekly news conferences. (At some of the press conferences, a supervisor claimed falsely that local coronavirus numbers were improving at the time.) After the weekly updates ended in mid-2021, there was controversy when two supervisors blocked county health experts from participating in further news conferences about it.

Homelessness: A court battle drew national attention when county supervisors moved in 2018 to evict hundreds of unhoused people from the Santa Ana riverbed — at a time shelters were full and every O.C. city banned camping in public. The case, overseen by U.S. District Judge David O. Carter, prompted the county and many O.C. cities to move faster in creating more shelter beds. But a shelter and housing shortage remains in O.C., as thousands continue to sleep on local streets.

Jailhouse informants scandal: One of SoCal’s biggest law enforcement scandals in recent history emerged publicly a decade ago when judges found that sheriff and DA officials cheated to win convictions. It led to reduced sentences — even freedom — for dozens of people convicted of crimes, including murder. The misconduct was confirmed by courts, internal investigations and the U.S. Department of Justice. It was twofold: misusing jailhouse informants — commonly known as snitches — and hiding information about that practice from defendants. At one point years ago, a majority of county supervisors rejected a request by one of their colleagues to have the county’s law enforcement watchdog look into whether the misconduct was continuing.

Supervisor Andrew Do’s family contracting controversy: An ethics controversy has swirled in recent months, after LAist uncovered over $13 million Supervisor Do directed to his 22 year-old daughter’s group — much of it awarded outside of the public’s view — without disclosing his family connection to other supervisors or the public. More than $6 million of it was provided after the group had failed to submit required federal audits showing what it did with millions in taxpayer money. In response, ethics reforms were proposed by Supervisor Vicente Sarmiento, including required disclosure of immediate family connections when supervisors are awarding money. It had support from Supervisor Katrina Foley but was rejected on a split 2-2 vote, with supervisors Don Wagner and Doug Chaffee opposing. (Do was absent.)

District 1

This western O.C. district includes almost all of Little Saigon, and encompasses all of Huntington Beach, Seal Beach, Los Alamitos, Cypress, La Palma, Westminster, Fountain Valley and most of Garden Grove.

The candidates are running to replace current Supervisor Andrew Do, who cannot run because he’s termed out.

For additional summaries of the candidates and their positions, check out overviews from Voice of OC and the OC Register.

Kimberly Ho

Business owner and Westminster City Council Member (Republican)

Ho, who has served as a Westminster council member since late 2016, owns a skincare company and numerous properties. She says she’s worked to take a stand against corruption at her city hall, and says she’ll replace the leadership at O.C.’s public health insurer CalOptima with “better people.”

Some platform highlights:

• “Comprehensive reforms in CalOptima to redirect funds toward member services”
• “Increasing housing accessibility”
• “Implementing routine audits to ensure that our government works for the people, not just the politicians”

Key endorsements: (None listed on website)

More voter resources:

• Go deeper: Ho’s answers to OC Register candidate questionnaire.
• Campaign website

Van Tran

O.C. Supervisor Andrew Do’s Co-Chief of Staff (Republican)

Tran, a well-known former state Assemblyman, has been Supervisor Andrew Do’s co-chief of staff and is endorsed by Do. Tran, who is an attorney, has highlighted his experience in Sacramento and as a Garden Grove City council member. He says securing the U.S.-Mexico border would be a top focus as county supervisor.

Tran started as Do’s chief in August 2022, and the two have been working closely together, according to a message from Do that was published by Tran’s campaign. During that time, Do quietly directed over $6 million in county funds to his own daughter’s organization, despite the group failing to submit required audits showing what it did with millions in past county funding.

Asked about this, Tran told the OC Register: “Andrew and I, actually, don’t even work together.”

Some platform highlights:

• “As Supervisor, I’ll prioritize securing the border and always putting Orange County first”
• “I have fought and will continue to fight for adequate resources for law enforcement and work to address the root causes of criminal recidivism”
• “Working as a chief of staff on the Orange County Board of Supervisors, I help manage the County’s $9 billion budget with the same sense of prudence and responsibility as I do my own personal finances”

Key endorsements:

• O.C. Supervisor Andrew Do
• Assemblymember Tri Ta 
• Westminster Mayor Charlie Nguyen
• Westminster Councilmember Amy Phan West
• Sacramento County District Attorney Thien Ho
• Former U.S. Rep. Dana Rohrabacher

More voter resources:

• Go deeper: Tran’s answers to OC Register candidate questionnaire.
• Campaign website: About, Endorsements, Issues

Frances Marquez

Cypress City Council Member (Democrat)

Marquez, a former legislative director for U.S. Rep. Alan Lowenthal, is the only Democrat running in the 1st District race. She touts her experience at the House of Representatives, where she says she helped secure funding for a local science and math program.

Marquez has often been the lone dissenting voice on the Cypress council, and was censured twice by the rest of the council in 2022. She is the only 1st District candidate to speak about the Do family contracting controversy during public comment at Board of Supervisors meetings. “It is a betrayal of the public trust,” Marquez said at a November meeting.

Some platform highlights:

• “Rooting out corruption with more transparency and accountability”
• “Preventing and reducing homelessness by improving access to housing and mental health services”
• “Protecting reproductive rights and abortion access”

Key endorsements:

• Democratic Party of Orange County
• Planned Parenthood Community Action Fund
• Orange County League of Conservation Voters
• National Union of Healthcare Workers
• Southwest Carpenters union
• U.S. Rep. Katie Porter 

More voter resources:

• Go deeper: Marquez’s answers to OC Register candidate questionnaire
• Campaign website: Meet Frances, Endorsements 

Janet Nguyen

State Senator for the 36th District (Republican)

Nguyen is seeking a return to the board she served on from 2007 to 2014. She’s calling for an overhaul of the county’s animal care agency and more audits of county spending. Many years ago, she was a key mentor to current Supervisor Andrew Do, whom she brought on as her chief of staff when she was a supervisor. But the two had a major falling out by 2016 and have been written about as political enemies.

Nguyen faced controversy for her 2011 restructuring of the board at CalOptima, the county health plan for hundreds of thousands of low-income residents. A grand jury report criticized her actions as disrupting the agency and letting its governing board be restructured by a lobbyist whose group organized a campaign fundraiser for Nguyen. At the time, her fellow Republican supervisors also harshly criticized her actions at CalOptima, including after a federal audit found serious problems. Nguyen disputed the criticisms, saying the agency’s outcomes were good.

Some platform highlights:

• “I will fight cronyism, fraud and abuse in government and increase transparency, the best defense against corrupt government”
• “As your representative, I stand with law enforcement for stronger public safety”
• “I’m a proven tax-fighter who protects Prop. 13”

Key endorsements:

• California Republican Party
• Orange County Register Editorial Board
• Lincoln Club of Orange County (one of O.C.’s biggest Republican donor groups)
• Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association PAC
• O.C. sheriff’s deputies union (Association of Orange County Deputy Sheriffs)
• Huntington Beach Mayor Tony Strickland

More voter resources:

• Go deeper: Nguyen’s answers to OC Register candidate questionnaire
• Campaign website: About Janet Nguyen, Endorsements

Michael Vo

Business owner, former Fountain Valley mayor (Republican)

Vo is promising funding for law enforcement and lower taxes. He ran for supervisor in a 2021 special election and placed fourth out of five candidates.

Some platform highlights:

• “Enhance security within Orange County by allocating adequate budgets for law enforcement and emergency response personnel”
• “Reduce taxes for residents of Orange County”
• “Develop concrete plans and measures to address homelessness in Orange County”

Key endorsements: (None listed on website)

More voter resources:

• Go deeper: Vo’s answers to OC Register candidate questionnaire.
• Campaign website

District 3

This is the largest O.C. supervisor district by area — encompassing a vast swath of East County.

It includes most of Irvine and Tustin, as well as Yorba Linda, Anaheim Hills, Villa Park, the eastern part of the city of Orange, most of unincorporated North Tustin, as well as Lake Forest, Mission Viejo, Rancho Santa Margarita and unincorporated canyon communities like Silverado Canyon.

For additional summaries of the candidates and their positions, check out this overview from Voice of OC.

Don Wagner

O.C. Supervisor seeking a second full term in office (Republican)

Wagner has served as supervisor since 2019, and points to his support of law enforcement and a state veterans cemetery near Anaheim Hills. He was one of the top opponents of mask mandates in the early months of COVID and opposes the “housing first” model to addressing homelessness, saying it isn’t working. He has largely defended Do’s actions in the family contracting controversy, saying Do did not do anything illegal.

Some platform highlights:

• “Commitment to limited, responsible governance”
• “Works hard to bring accountability and transparency to county government”
• “Fought against wasteful, reckless budgets” when serving in the state Legislature

Key endorsements:

• O.C. Sheriff Don Barnes
• O.C. Supervisor Andrew Do
• Orange County Register Editorial Board
• Lincoln Club of Orange County (one of O.C.’s biggest Republican donor groups)
• Orange County Fire Authority firefighters’ union (Orange County Professional Firefighters)
• Orange County Business Council’s Political Action Committee (BIZPAC)

More voter resources:

• Go deeper: Wagner’s answers to OC Register candidate questionnaire
• Campaign website: About Don Wagner, Endorsements

Farrah Khan

Irvine Mayor (Democrat)

Khan, who was elected mayor in 2020, points to her creation of the Irvine City Council’s diversity, equity and inclusion committee and her work to distribute money to small businesses during the pandemic.

Her former campaign manager and top advisor, Melahat Rafiei, pleaded guilty last year to attempted wire fraud, admitting she tried to bribe two Irvine council members before Khan was elected. Khan was not accused of wrongdoing. Though Khan said she cut ties when Rafiei’s corruption arrest became public, Voice of OC obtained records showing that, months later, Rafiei continued to represent herself as working for Khan in text messages to the city manager. Khan has said she stands by her statement that ties were cut.

Some platform highlights:

• “Create an Eviction Diversion program like the one I initiated in Irvine to help keep families in their homes when facing loss of job or health emergencies.”
• “Develop affordable housing programs that cater to diverse income levels”
• “Improve public transportation options, enhancing mobility and connectivity while prioritizing pedestrian and cyclist safety”

Key endorsements:

• Democratic Party of Orange County
• Anaheim Mayor Ashleigh Aitken
• SEIU-UHW (healthcare workers’ union at several local hospitals, including Kaiser Permanente)
• Planned Parenthood
• Orange County Labor Federation (umbrella group of labor unions in O.C.)
• Orange County League of Conservation Voters
• Sierra Club

More voter resources:

• Go deeper: Khan’s answers to OC Register candidate questionnaire.
• Campaign website: Priorities, About Mayor Khan, Endorsements