Bao Nguyen (politician) explained

Bao Nguyen
Office1:17th Mayor of Garden Grove, California
Term Start1:December 9, 2014
Term End1:December 13, 2016
Preceded1:Bruce Broadwater
Successor1:Steven R. Jones
State Assembly2:California
Nationality:American
Occupation:Community organizer, educator, politician
Alma Mater:University of California, Irvine
Naropa University
Party:Democratic
Office2:Trustee of Garden Grove Unified School District Board of Education
Termstart2:July 19, 2011
Termend2:December 2, 2014

Bao Nguyen (born 1980) is an American Democratic politician from Orange County, California, and a former mayor of Garden Grove, California.[1] He also previously served as a trustee on the Garden Grove Unified School District Board of Education.

Early life and education

Nguyen was born in a United Nations refugee camp in Thailand to parents escaping Vietnam, and arrived in the United States when he was 3 months old.[2] He attended school within the Garden Grove Unified School District. He attended Garden Grove High School, and graduated from Pacifica High School.[3]

Nguyen graduated from UC Irvine with a bachelor's degree in political science. As an undergraduate, he interned for the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in Rockville, Maryland.[4] Nguyen also earned a master's degree in Indo-Tibetan Buddhist studies from Naropa University.

Political career

Nguyen was appointed to the Garden Grove Unified School District Board of Education in 2011,[5] after a close race in 2010. He was elected as a trustee in 2012, and served a term as vice president. As a board member, he fought against the exclusion of LGBT Vietnamese from the annual Little Saigon Tết Parade.[6] [7] He resigned from the board of trustees in 2014 due to becoming mayor.[8] [9]

Nguyen defeated incumbent Bruce Broadwater by 15 votes in the 2014 election to become mayor of Garden Grove. He also became the first Vietnamese-American mayor of the city.[10] As mayor, he sought to improve government transparency and accountability, and to engage voters by making city finance records available online.[11] [12] [13] Nguyen was appointed by the state governor to the Orange County Fair and Event Center Board of Directors. He resigned the position in 2015.[14]

The president of the Garden Grove Police Association, a political opponent of Nguyen, "surreptitiously recorded a conversation" in June 2015 with Nguyen, then newly elected mayor.[15] According to the OC Weekly, "during the discussion, Nguyen called [Garden Grove] City Councilman Phat Bui 'a fucking dick,' a reference to efforts by Bui's supporters to label Nguyen a communist sympathizer for not vehemently protesting Riverside's sister-city relationship with Can Tho, Vietnam". Nguyen stated the insinuation was inaccurate and that he simply "didn't think one city council should tell another what to do".[15]

In the 2016 elections Nguyen ran for congress in California's 46th district, long held by Loretta Sanchez, with former California State Senate member Lou Correa as his opponent.[16] [17] In the June primary Nguyen came in second with 14.6% of the vote after Correa received 43.7%.[18] [19] In the November Nguyen lost to Correa after receiving just under 30% of the vote in the general election.[20]

Nguyen's term as Garden Grove mayor ended in December 2016, and he was succeeded by council member/Mayor Pro Tem, Steve Jones.[21] [22]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Mayor Bao Nguyen. City of Garden Grove. dead. 2016-09-14. https://web.archive.org/web/20170703191948/http://www.ci.garden-grove.ca.us/BaoNguyen. 2017-07-03.
  2. News: Two cities in Little Saigon elect Vietnamese American mayors. Do. Anh. November 18, 2014. Los Angeles Times. 2016-09-14.
  3. Web site: Meet Bao: His Story. Bao Nguyen for Congress 2016. en-US. dead. 2016-09-14. https://web.archive.org/web/20160609042953/http://bao2016.com/about/. 2016-06-09.
  4. Web site: Voter Information for Bao Quoc Nguyen. SmartVoter. League of Women Voters of California Education Fund. live. 2016-09-14. https://web.archive.org/web/20110103192249/http://www.smartvoter.org:80/2010/11/02/ca/or/vote/nguyen_b/index.html . 2011-01-03 .
  5. News: Bao Nguyen Appointed to GGUSD Board. Petruccelli. Justin. June 27, 2011. Fountain Valley Patch. 2016-12-14.
  6. News: Bao Nguyen, Rabble Rouser Transforming Politics in Little Saigon, OC. Lam. Andrew. December 9, 2014. The Huffington Post. 2016-09-14.
  7. News: [UPDATED: Majority of Trustees Agree!] Bao Nguyen, Garden Grove Unified Trustee, To Ask District Not Allow Homophobic Tet Parade Organizers Use of School Bus]. Arellano. Gustavo. 2013-02-06. OC Weekly. Gustavo Arellano. 2016-09-14.
  8. Web site: Garden Grove Unified School District Board Minutes, December 2, 2014. Garden Grove Unified School District. dead. 2016-09-14. https://web.archive.org/web/20161005024319/http://www.ggusd.us/ourpages/board//Board%20Minutes/2014/12-02-14.pdf. October 5, 2016.
  9. News: School board to appoint replacement for Bao Nguyen. Haire. Chris. 2014-12-11. Orange County Register. 2016-09-14.
  10. News: Garden Grove's first Vietnamese-American mayor plans to be a hands-on leader. Ramirez. Bianca. November 18, 2014. Southern California Public Radio. 2016-09-14.
  11. News: After Year of Scandal, Garden Grove Makes Transparency High Priority. Vo. Thy. 2015-05-19. Voice of OC. 2016-09-14.
  12. New Open Government Site Furthers City Transparency. 2015-11-16. City of Garden Grove. 2016-09-14.
  13. News: Bao Nguyen, First Vietnamese-American Mayor of Major U.S. City, is Running For Congress. Bai. Stephany. November 18, 2015. NBC News. 2016-09-14.
  14. Web site: Transcript Meeting Of The OCFEC Board of Directors 32nd District Agricultural Association. Taylor. Janet. November 19, 2015.
  15. News: Garden Grove Police Union Boss Secretly Recorded Private Conversation With Mayor. Moxley. R. Scott. OC Weekly. 2016-03-11.
  16. News: Garden Grove mayor Bao Nguyen to announce bid for Congress. Wisckol. Martin. October 12, 2015. Orange County Register. 2016-09-14.
  17. News: In the Heart of Santa Ana, Bao Nguyen Makes His (Third) Stand. Lam. Charles. 2015-10-14. OC Weekly. 2016-09-14.
  18. Web site: California's 46th Congressional District election, 2016. Ballotpedia. live. 2016-09-14. https://web.archive.org/web/20150820003233/http://ballotpedia.org:80/California's_46th_Congressional_District_election,_2016 . 2015-08-20 .
  19. News: 46th Congressional District: Lou Correa advances to November. Wisckol. Martin. 2016-06-07. Orange County Register. 2016-09-14.
  20. News: Democrat Lou Correa elected Orange County's next congressman. Mai-Duc. Christine. November 9, 2016. Los Angeles Times. 2016-11-12.
  21. News: Garden Grove Elects First Latina to City Council. Vo. Thy. November 9, 2016. Voice of OC. 2016-11-12.
  22. Web site: AGENDA- Garden Grove City Council- Regular Meeting- December 13, 2016 . City of Garden Grove . December 13, 2016.

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