Q&A | Open Orange City Council seat for District 2
As the Nov. 3 Orange City Council election approaches, The Panther compiled a series of interviews with the various prospective candidates for mayor and Districts 1, 2, 3 and 5 that will be divided into five installments differentiated by the open positions.
Martin Varona (left), Daniel Correa (center) and Jon Dumitru (right) are competing for the District 2 seat on the Orange City Council. Photo courtesy of Varona, Correa and Dumitru.
The Orange City Council election Nov. 3 offers open seats for mayor as well as Orange Districts 1, 2, 3 and 5. To break down candidate perspectives and values for our student and community readers, The Panther asked these local politicians about their respective platforms, initiatives and goals to address concerns raised by the community.
With District 2 candidate Caroline Alatorre revealing her withdrawal from the election to The Panther Oct. 5, the election narrows down to a competition between Martin Varona, Daniel Correa and Jon Dumitru. All nominees discussed goals to rebuild Orange’s economy by rekindling entrepreneurial spirit within the community and creating higher paying jobs for low-income residents. However, the candidates have an array of ideas in regard to prioritizing funding for different aspects of the community.
The candidate responses have been lightly edited for clarity and stylistic standards.
Martin Varona
Q: What are the most notable components of your campaign platform?
A: There's a tendency to provide as little information as possible to remain as neutral and ambiguous as possible for candidates running in local elections; this makes it difficult for voters to understand a candidate's perspectives and instead benefits some candidates with name recognition for the wrong reasons. I am a progressive candidate that is challenging the status quo that is kept in power through a lack of broad representation and funneling of the same names into our city council year after year, as is the case this election cycle. My platform pays special attention to inclusivity, accessibility and equity. I am also a millennial, renter, Brown Latinx person, STEM-educated professional, Spanish speaker and son of Mexican immigrants – all of which bring forward new perspectives that have remained elusive to the Orange City Council.
Q: What initiatives do you want to push for on the Orange City Council?
A: The initiatives I want to push are based on socioeconomic equity. We have a housing shortage, and we should look to build more housing that integrates well within our current communities while allowing people of various incomes and backgrounds to enjoy our city. Our economy is tumbling, and we need more people to tap into it through microbusinesses and small start-ups so that an entrepreneurial spirit can be ignited within lower-income communities that don't have the credit or wealth to start a brick and mortar business.
If we reprioritize our city’s general budget, we can move more funding to our libraries so that they can insert themselves into our hard-to-reach communities to promote literacy and help students stay intellectually engaged.
As a civil engineer with traffic engineering experience, I would like to see more environmentally sustainable and efficient modes of transportation being promoted, which are often used more by non-white, low-income and disabled people.
Q: How do you plan on utilizing your position to uplift community concerns and voices, especially those of marginalized groups?
A: I will aim to make the Orange City Council more inclusive and accessible to people who have been politically ignored. I believe the city council should convene twice a month to give more opportunities for the public to engage with council members. Non-English speakers should be able to adequately participate in our council meetings by having the city provide translated materials.
The Orange City Council needs to make amends to gain the trust of Latinx, Black and immigrant communities. This can start by ensuring that our police do not act as de facto immigration agents and by taking a hard look at how we can better administer public safety without the need to solely rely on the Orange Police Department. If we take these bold steps, I believe we will be moving in the best direction for Orange's future. It just takes candidates that want to face the reality of today.
Daniel Correa
Q: What are the most notable components of your campaign platform?
A: Economy: I want to elevate the Orange economy by drawing larger businesses to our community and increasing the per capita median income. This will allow businesses to grow and create higher paying jobs.
Homelessness: I want a complete resolution of the homeless population in our area, which will come with the cooperation of all cities within Orange County by following the same strategic plan.
Preservation and restoration: I want to preserve the quality of our neighborhoods. Restoration is the first answer, planning is the second answer and prevention is the third.
Q: What initiatives do you want to push for on the Orange City Council?
A: I would like to see the City of Orange obtain its revenue only from existing taxes and fees without increases. I also want to create a non-partisan, citizen-led political action committee to assist homeless individuals within our city – in a respectful, humane and effective program – as well as ensure that historic homes in a residential area will remain private and not become an office or a business.
Q: How do you plan on utilizing your position to uplift community concerns and voices, especially those of marginalized groups?
A: I want to open a communication system between our government, the police and minority groups to remove the perceived stigma of marginalized people by having an effective communication system in place for an open dialogue about issues from both sides – the government and the people. This will establish more effective communication and understanding of the two entities’ concerns and purposes.
District 2 candidate Caroline Alatorre withdrew from the race and told The Panther Oct. 5 she endorses Correa’s campaign in lieu of her withdrawal.
Jon Dumitru
Q: What are the most notable components of your campaign platform?
A: I have been endorsed by the Orange Fire Department and Orange Police Department, and I am a true homegrown candidate. I was born at the Chapman Global Medical Center, and I am a Chapman Panther. My campaign is one of true transparency and lends itself to a bright future for Orange. I am the only candidate with city council experience on the executive level and will be able to hit the ground running on day one to get things done for my district and the city as a whole. We need representation that is open to all and not hyper-political, and I will bring that to the council in a no-nonsense working agenda to get things done.
Q: What initiatives do you want to push for on the Orange City Council?
A: I will ensure full funding for our police department and fire services and will work with the city council to ensure they have the equipment needed to do the job safely and completely. I believe the core of government is to ensure public safety, and I will do just that.
Next, we must work with our business community and the Orange Chamber of Commerce to assist our businesses to survive, expand and relocate to the City of Orange to create jobs for every educational and income level. The more jobs we can create and residents that are able to go back to work, the faster our local economy will rebound and we will thrive again.
We must also work on quality of life issues. We must ensure our seniors are provided necessities and social services through the Orange Senior Center, such as Meals on Wheels or health items. We also have to be aggressive on graffiti and our roads being filled with trash. I will be taking on Orange County Transportation Authority to maintain their bus stops and clean up their garbage, and I will work with the California Department of Transportation to maintain the on and off ramps and improve their vegetation management.
Q: How do you plan on utilizing your position to uplift community concerns and voices, especially those of marginalized groups?
A: I always work for the community and I will ensure that a "mobile" office is established at least two times a month in the West Orange area, specifically to help residents that are challenged with transportation or childcare needs to have access to city services. I will also push for even greater internet access to city services. Finally, I will ensure that the public always has its voice heard on city items from public comments at meetings to a re-established community newspaper. We need everybody to have a say and have their voice be strong.