Santa Ana, Calif. (June 14, 2010) – The Latino and the Vietnamese National Republican Coalitions are co-hosting a “Support Van Tran for Congress and Advance Republican Victory in the Blue State of California Fundraiser Reception” on July 28, 2010 at the home of Khai Nguyen in Fairfax, VA.
Van Tran is the Republican Candidate for the 47th California Congressional District. He has served as the 68th District State Assemblyman since 2004 – the first Vietnamese-American in any state legislature. He represents Orange County, including the cities of Anaheim, Costa Mesa, Fountain Valley, Garden Grove, Newport Beach, Stanton, and Westminster.
Tran serves on the Judiciary, Banking and Finance and Governmental Organization Committees. He also Chairs the Assembly Select Committee on International Trade, and is a member of the Select Committee on Community Colleges.
He is also the Assistant Republican Leader in the Assembly and co-chair of the Asian Pacific Islander Joint Caucus.
Tran won the June 8 Republican Primary. Quang Pham withdrew before the filing deadline and endorsed Tran. Katherine Smith, a member of the Anaheim Union High School District, received 25.9 percent of the vote. Tan Nguyen got 19.8 percent.
Tran will now face Democrat incumbent Loretta Sanchez in November.
Tran’s family first came to America in 1975, evacuated by the U.S. Army a week before the fall of Saigon. Originally settling in Michigan, the family moved to Orange County while he was in high school.
Tran completed his Bachelors Degree in Political Science at the University of California, Irvine. He earned both a Masters Degree in Public Administration and a Juris Doctorate from Hamline University School of Law in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Politically active during his university days, Tran started as an intern for Congressman Robert Dornan and for State Senator (now Congressman) Ed Royce. Prior to serving in the Assembly, Tran was managing partner of his own law practice, served on the Garden Grove Planning Commission, and served as Vice-Mayor of Garden Grove, having garnered the highest number of votes in the history of a city council election.
His community involvement included serving as Vice Chairman of the Orange County based El Capitan District of the Boy Scouts of America. He is also a lifetime member of the prestigious American Council of Young Political Leaders, and a 2002 Delegate to the Young Leaders Conference in Zurich, Switzerland.
In 2004, OC Metro Magazine recognized Van as one of the Hottest 25 People in Orange County. The Orange County Register recognized him in 2001 as a person to watch.
Tran and his wife, Cyndi, have two children, Sophie and Alex. Visit www.joinvantran.com.
