Laguna Niguel Citizens are Fed Up with lack of City Council Representation.

As a long-time Orange County resident, I have been closely following the unfortunate events surrounding the California Voting Rights Act (CVRA) in a couple of South OC Cities, including Laguna Niguel, unfold. I actually was very excited to learn that after receiving a demand letter and then entering into a Settlement Agreement with the CVRA attorney, Ms. Michelle Jackson, Laguna Niguel decided to transition to a by-district election system. I mean, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see that the City Council members who claim to represent all of the residents of Laguna Niguel come from the same small cabal that controls the city.

Laguna Niguel is a city ripe with political nepotism and carpetbaggers. This cabal takes care of its own — you know, those areas that get all the benefits and resources. Those that come from the “less desirable” portions of town have been left with zero representation on council, hence zero concern over what may be beneficial to them. So kudos for “transitioning”; but, then this pre-pubescent council decided to stomp their foot and stick it to the residents by hiring a high priced law firm to fight against the CVRA attorney’s bill while discrediting the residents that sought her help.

I had the privilege and opportunity to speak with two Laguna Niguel residents, who, in the spring of 2023, fed up with being disregarded and ignored, joined a local group working to ensure that OC City Councils represented entire cities, not just the wealthy, predominantly white neighborhoods. These two residents both spoke on the condition of anonymity as they were very concerned that the current Council would retaliate against them and target their property and (or) families. Hey, we all saw what happened to Sandy Rains (who in a Voice of OC article referenced concerns over the safety and protection of her family), Rischi Sharma, Jerry Slusiewicz, and even Ms. Jackson was exposed to hateful treatment by the City. As Ms. Rains pointed out, Laguna Niguel is an environment where it is not safe to disagree.

The two residents I spoke with are both members of a “protected class,” and are registered to vote in the City of Laguna Niguel. One of the residents agreed to have the interview questions and responses published (again, subject to anonymity).

Q1: Can you tell me why you got involved with the nonprofit that sent the demand letter to Laguna Niguel in 2023 requesting it to transition to by-district elections?

A1: Honestly? Because enough is enough. I’ve lived here for over 20 years, and I’ve never seen anyone on that city council that comes from my part of town. We’re always ignored. The City acts like we don’t exist unless they need something from us—votes, labor, taxes, a place to dump undesirable businesses and affordable housing units—but when it comes to actual decisions — we’re shut out. So when I found out there was a group that was standing up for people like me, I didn’t even hesitate. I said yes. Because I’m tired of feeling powerless.

Q2: And what happened when the demand letter was announced and made public?

A2: Man, that council went off. They didn’t just disagree—they trashed us. Said our demand letter was fake. That nobody was really behind the lawsuit. Like, I’m sitting right here! I’m a real person! But they stood up there in a public meeting and called our attorney a “vengeful wife” and that she gave lawyers a bad name—said she was doing this just to get back at them for something they did to her husband in the past.

It was disgusting. Like, how do you just lie like that in front of everybody? And worse, how do you treat your own residents like they’re nothing? Like we don’t even count? Just because we want the same benefits, representation and resources that they provide to their own neighborhood.

Q3: How did that make you feel?

A3: Disrespected, disenfranchised and angry. It was like they were saying, “You don’t matter. You’re not one of us. You don’t belong here.” And all we’re asking for are fair elections and a chance for a seat at the table. We just want people in every part of the city to have a real voice. That’s it. But instead of listening, they try to humiliate us and treat us like we are stupid.

Q4: Why do you believe district voting matters?

A4: Because it empowers folks like me to run for office and have a voice in local government; it gives us a chance to represent and protect the areas in which we live. Right now, everything’s decided by the same people from the same neighborhoods, over and over again. They’ve got money, connections, and they take care of each other. But what about us? Who’s looking out for our kids? Our streets? Our housing?

With district voting, somebody from my side of town could run and actually win. They wouldn’t need to raise hundreds of thousands to fund a citywide election. They could knock on doors, talk to neighbors, and actually represent us. That’s what scares the current city council—losing control.

Q5: Some people have said the demand to switch to districts is about revenge. What do you say to that?

A5: That’s just straight-up nonsense. This isn’t about revenge—it’s about rights. They just don’t want to give up the power to direct city resources and projects to those areas that will benefit them. So they make it personal, hoping it’ll distract people. But I see through it. A lot of us do. They can call us names, discredit our attorney, charge up their own legal fees that the residents have to pay, mock us, whatever—but we’re not backing down. You know what they say? If you do not have any legitimate argument, just throw mud! And that’s what they’re doing, throwing very expensive and costly mud!

Q6: Given that the City has switched to district voting, what is happening now?

A6: From what I understand, although the City entered a settlement agreement and met the requirements of the demand letter, they are refusing to pay the fees and expenses incurred by the CVRA attorney representing our benefits, which has resulted in a lawsuit. Rather than pay the CVRA attorney approximately $35,000, the current Laguna Niguel Council has hired an outside law firm, which is busy billing the City (AKA the residents of Laguna Niguel), more than the cost they agreed to pay the CVRA attorney when they entered into the settlement agreement and switched to district voting. In other words, and given that no City has ever won in court, our City Council will be sticking us with hundreds of thousands of dollars in attorney fees because they decide to act like disgruntled preschoolers who did not get their way, and decide to go back on the promises made in the settlement agreement.

Q7: Is there anything else that you would like to add?

A7: Well, first I hope that the nonprofit group that I am involved in and the CVRA attorney and her experts are not afraid to continue fighting for us and those of us in other cities that need fair representation, especially after the disgusting treatment that they have received.

Next, I want everyone to know that I am pursuing this because I just want fairness. I want to know that my community matters. That our voices count. I want to walk into a council meeting and see someone who grew up like I did and lives in my part of town. Someone who gets it and wants to ensure that the police patrol my neighborhood as much as they patrol the current Councils. That’s not asking for too much. That’s what this whole Country’s supposed to be about, right? Hey, maybe that’s why we have congressional DISTRICTS, assembly DISTRICTS, and why California’s cities are increasingly voluntarily switching to DISTRICTS.