Van Tran
Van Thai Tran is a Vietnamese American attorney and politician in California, formerly serving as a Republican member of the California State Assembly, representing portions of Orange County. Tran was the highest-ranking Vietnamese American elected official was the highest-ranking Vietnamese American elected official in U.S. history along with Hubert Vo until Joseph Cao was elected to the United States House of Representatives in 2008. Tran took office one month before Vo did, making him the first Vietnamese American to serve in a state legislature. He served in the Assembly as Assistant Republican Leader.
Early life, education and career
On October 19, 1964, Tran was born in Saigon, South Vietnam. Tran and his family emigrated to the United States after being evacuated by the United States Army one week before the Fall of Saigon, when he was 10 years old. After originally settling in Grand Rapids, Michigan, they moved to Orange County when Tran was in high school.Tran worked as an intern and later as a staff aide for Congressman Bob Dornan and for State Senator Ed Royce. He earned a B.A. in Political Science at the University of [California, Irvine]. Tran completed a Master of Public Administration from Hamline University and a J.D. from Hamline University School of Law. He was admitted to the California State Bar in 1994.
In 2000, Tran was elected to the Garden Grove City Council with the highest number of votes in city history and became only the second Vietnamese American man to be elected to office in the United States.
California State Assembly
Elections
2004
In 2004, after incumbent Ken Maddox became term-limited, Tran ran against Mark Leyes for his seat, the 68th assembly district. On November 2, 2004, Tran was elected to the California Assembly.2006
Tran was re-elected to the Assembly in 2006. On November 7, 2006, Tran won re-election with 62% of the vote.2008
Tran also ran for re-election in 2008, winning the general election with 54% of the vote. Tran was re-elected to the Assembly in 2008.Tenure
Tran represented the 68th District. He was the Vice Chair of the Assembly Judiciary Committee. He also served on the Banking and Finance Committee and the Governmental Organization Committee. In June 2007, he was appointed by the Assembly Speaker as chairman of the Select Committee on International Trade.Post-Assembly activities
2010 congressional election
In April 28, 2009, Politico reported that prominent Republicans such as John McCain encouraged Tran, who was term-limited from the state Assembly, to run for California's 47th congressional district. Ultimately, after running in the primary for the Republican nomination, Tran faced off against the seven-term Democratic incumbent Loretta Sanchez in the general election. The race attracted mainstream attention, with Rudy Giuliani and Bill Clinton stumping for Tran and Sanchez, respectively. Some Vietnamese were angered by Sanchez's comment that "the Vietnamese and the Republicans" sought to win her seat. Tran ultimately lost, only winning 39.3% of the vote compared to Sanchez's 53.0%.2014 State Board of Equalization election
In 2013, Tran announced that he would run for State Board of Equalization representing District 4. In June 2014, the results determined that a runoff election would be held between the top two candidates Nader Shahatit and Assemblywoman Diane Harkey; Harkey would later go on to win in the general election.2024 Orange County Board of Supervisors election
After incumbent Andrew Do termed out of office, Tran ran for Orange County Supervisor to represent District 1. Tran was endorsed by Andrew Do, who Tran worked for as Chief of Staff. Tran ended up in third place behind Cypress City Councilmember Frances Marquez and state Senator Janet Nguyen in the primary for the first district; the top two candidates competed in a runoff election later in November.California politics
In August 2022, Tran was appointed Chief of Staff for Orange County Supervisor Andrew Do.In December 2022, Tran was appointed to the Orange County Water District Board of Directors to represent Division 4 after the seat had been vacated by Tri Ta. The same month, he was elected as second vice president. In September 2024, Orange County would announce that Tran, who had ran as an appointed incumbent, would be appointed again for the position by default in lieu of an election due to a lack of qualified opponents.