Greater Orange News Service

eLECTION Watch 2010
an Orange Net News Special News and Analysis Series

Ramifications of the Nichols Realignment continue…
CLICK HERE FOR UPDATE MONDAY AUGUST 9

The 2008 realignment of Orange Unified Trustee areas, known as the Nichols Realignment (named for OUSD Trustee Kim Nichols-the driving force behind the idea) was then called “A gift from heaven” by OUSD Trustee Melissa Smith because it accomplished the goal of removing controversial OUSD Trustee Steve Rocco from running as an incumbent by moving his home into another Trustee Area that was not up for election when his term was over. Smith and Nichols had been the driving force behind an ill connived recall campaign against Rocco that fell way short of needed signatures. After the failure of the recall, the resulting “gift” of the boundary realignment also changed Smith’s home out of Area 1 where she was elected, Smith however remained the Area 1 Trustee until her term expired –this year (although she had pulled papers to run in her realigned Area in 2008, she never filed). Under Orange Unified rules, Trustees must live in the Trustee Area they represent, but are elected by the whole district. This unique election arrangement is a by-product of Orange becoming a unified district. The arrangement guaranteed that the OUSD Trustees would be distributed throughout the areas being unified in the new district and not dominated by Orange, at that time the largest city. The same system gave OUSD an unusually large 7 member trustee board.

State election law requires the candidate filing period be extended if an incumbent does not file during the regular filing period. With Smith no longer living in Area 1, she cannot file, therefore, the filing period has been extended.

So far the non-partisan OUSD Area 1 office has drawn fairly involved partisans. Active Republicans Harry Persaud and Chris Nguyen have filed papers. Peraud is an Anaheim City Planning Commissioner and Nguyen is a highly connected Board board officer of the Orange Villa Park Republican Assembly (OVPRA). The OVPRA Board has some highly ambitious members including Board President of the OVPRA and OUSD Trustee Dr. Alexia Deligianni. Not finished with her first term on the OUSD Board, in June Deligianni made an unsuccessful run for Superintendent of Public Instruction. Also filing for the OUSD Area 1 is Diane Singer. Singer, has impressive educational credentials with a long involvement in education with OUSD including being OUSD LEGCO Chair. President of the non-profit KinderCaminata that introduces low-income children to college, Singer too has had political ambitions. In 2008, Singer ran as a Democrat for the 60th State Assembly seat with a detailed education platform, but lost to Curt Hagman. Currently a commissioner on the Anaheim Community Center Authority, Singer also pulled papers to run for the Anaheim City Council before pulling and filing papers on the last day of the regular filing period for the OUSD Area 1 Seat.

The new filing period ends on August 11th.

Keep up with all Greater Orange updates at ONN TWITER




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