Tammy Kim Exits Council Race

On Friday, Tammy Kim withdrew her name as a candidate in the special City Council election in District 5, in the face of a lawsuit and an Orange County District Attorney investigation over allegations she lied about her residency in that district.
 
Kim announced her withdrawal the day after a hearing in Orange County Superior Court on a lawsuit brought by Ron Scolesdang, a District 5 resident who, like Kim, ran unsuccessfully for Mayor in last year’s election.

Scolesdang petitioned the court to keep Kim’s name off the ballot, alleging she is not really a resident of District 5. The judge was set to rule on Friday, the last day before ballots were sent to the printer and could no longer be changed. After Kim’s announcement, the court granted Scolesdang’s petition, removing Kim’s name from the ballot.
 
Meanwhile, City Hall sources told Irvine Community News & Views that the District Attorney’s Office requested that the City turn over all documents and communications relating to Kim’s candidate filing and residency. (Using a false address on a voter registration form or on a candidate’s official declaration of candidacy is a felony.)
 
Kim has said she moved from the condo she owns in Northwood (District 3) to an address in District 5 due to safety concerns. She then registered to vote in District 5 in May 2024, and voted as a resident of District 5 in the November 2024 election when she was a candidate for Mayor. After losing that election, Kim obtained papers from the City Clerk in December to run for Council in District 5, using the same address at which she had registered to vote in May.
 
Scolesdang’s petition to the Orange County Superior Court cited the report of a private investigator, Matthew Dokter & Associates, who surveilled Kim’s condo in District 3 and the District 5 address on five separate dates — between December 19th and January 9th. The investigator observed Kim coming and going from the District 3 condo, but never observed her at the District 5 address, which was occupied by a family of four. The report says that on January 9th, an investigator spoke briefly with the mother in that family who said they had lived there for eight years and had not rented a room to anyone in that time. Based on these observations, along with documentary evidence, the investigator concluded that Kim actually still resided in District 3.
 
Four days after the private investigator spoke with the mother in the District 5 address, Kim obtained a second set of candidacy papers from the City Clerk, using an entirely different address in District 5. She returned those papers just in time to meet the January 17th candidate filing deadline.
 
Kim told Voice of OC on Friday morning that she decided to withdraw after talking with her family. “I’m re-centering my life, I’m tired of the constant harassment,” she was quoted as saying.
 
For his part, Scolesdang said Friday that he is “glad we’re now going to have a fair election.”
 
With Kim’s withdrawal, the candidates for the April 15th City Council special election in District 5 are Woodbridge homeowners association board member Dana Cornelius, former Irvine City Councilman (2018-2022) Anthony Kuo, and public relations professional Betty Martinez Franco.