Tony Strickland has big lead in state Senate District 36 special election

Tony Strickland has leaped out to the lead in California’s state Senate District 36 special election.

Strickland, a Republican, largely maintained a lead he had Tuesday night over Democrats Jimmy Pham and Julie Diep, as well as fellow Republican John Briscoe, in the most recent results released Wednesday at 5 p.m.

Strickland, 54, a member of the Huntington Beach City Council who previously served in the state Senate from 2008 to 2012, had 67,012 votes — 51% of the total counted so far. That was followed by Pham with 35,605 votes (27.1%), Diep with 19,279 votes (14.7%) and Briscoe with 9,555 votes (7.3%).

If a candidate receives more than 50% of the overall vote, he or she would be voted in outright and avoid a runoff election scheduled for April 29.

Strickland lost about a tenth of a percentage point in the most recent update. He said in a phone interview earlier Wednesday that he was cautiously optimistic he would stay above that threshold.

“I couldn’t be happier with where we are right now,” Strickland said. “I mean, with four candidates, it’s really difficult to get [a majority].”

Strickland noted that more people are leaving California than entering in recent years, for the first time in history.

“That’s based on the policies of [Gov.] Gavin Newsom and the [Democrat] supermajority,” he said. “We need to bring Surf City common sense to Sacramento.”

Then-Huntington Beach Mayor Tony Strickland and daughter Ruby in the 2023 Fourth of July Parade.

(File Photo)

Strickland, who also served in the state Assembly from 1998 to 2004, said former Gov. Jerry Brown once told him that he was a better governor because he had previous experience as the mayor of Oakland.

“I believe my experience as mayor of Huntington Beach and being on the council will make me a better legislator when I go up there,” Strickland said. “When you look at the Legislature right now, 80% of the Legislature has less than four years experience. For me to come up there and have 10 years of legislative experience on top of my experience at the local level ... I will deliver for this district. I do believe that leadership matters, and I believe ... we will get back to basics and turn the state back around.”

The vote totals include both Orange and Los Angeles counties. District 36 includes most of coastal Orange County — including Seal Beach, Huntington Beach, Newport Beach and Laguna Beach — and also the Los Angeles County cities of Artesia, Cerritos and Hawaiian Gardens.

As of Wednesday evening in Orange County, voter turnout was pegged at 22.9%, with 136,412 ballots counted among nearly 600,000 registered voters in the district.

The Orange County Registrar of Voters will update the county’s totals for the special election weekdays at 5 p.m. Thursday. In Los Angeles County, the next update will be released on Friday afternoon.

The results will be certified by March 6.

In a statement Tuesday night, the Orange County Republican Party vowed to continue to work to ensure every Republican vote was counted in the days ahead.

“With over 58% of the vote going to Republicans, Orange County voters sent a clear message to Governor Newsom and the legislators in Sacramento that we want bold, conservative leadership on quality-of-life issues like crime, everyday costs and homelessness,” the statement read. “Rather than passing foolish, performative legislation to ‘Trump-proof’ California, leaders need to re-allocate priorities and remove artificial barriers creating myriad problems affecting us today.”

Jimmy Pham, an attorney, serves on Westminster’s traffic commission.

(Courtesy of Jimmy Pham for State Assembly)

Pham, an immigration attorney who serves on Westminster’s traffic commission, ran for the state Assembly in District 70 last year but lost to Republican Tri Ta.

Reached Wednesday for an interview, Pham said it was a wait-and-see game to see if there would be a run-off election or not this time around.

“We don’t have much to say, a concession speech or anything like that,” he said. “We’ll see how it plays out. Honestly, I’m a little bit surprised how much support [Strickland] got with his extreme viewpoints and what he’s doing … We’re going to continue to ballot cure and keep our hopes and prayers up and keep our fingers crossed, wait until the end when the votes are certified.”

He said he saw the election as a chance for people who disapprove of President Trump’s policies, including immigration crackdowns and talk of eliminating the Department of Education, a chance to voice that disapproval at the ballot box.

“That’s why I’m running,” he said. “We’re going to fight on. We’re not going to accept this … We’re going to fight to defend LGBTQ rights, DEI rights that are being taken away by this administration.”

Diep is a speech-language pathologist who was elected to the Anaheim Elementary School District Board of Education in 2024. Briscoe is a former Ocean View School District trustee.

The state Senate District 36 seat became available when Janet Nguyen, a Republican, vacated her seat to serve on the Orange County Board of Supervisors after embattled former Supervisor Andrew Do resigned and pleaded guilty to a federal bribery charge. Nguyen endorsed Strickland to secede her.

Strickland’s election to the state Senate would mean the Huntington Beach City Council would need a new council member. The last time there was a vacancy caused by Mayor Pro Tem Tito Ortiz’s resignation in 2021, the council appointed Rhonda Bolton.

“It’s up to my colleagues, but I have the utmost faith that my colleagues will do the right thing, whatever they decide,” Strickland said.