Democratic Party of Orange County (DPOC) Chair Florice Hoffman recently filed a cease-and-desist letter against Irvine Mayor Larry Agran and City Council District 6 candidate Scotty Hong after a paid campaign mailer falsely advertised that both candidates were supported by the California Democratic Party (CDP) in the upcoming elections.
In the letter, Hoffman alleges that a campaign mailer paid for by Agran and Hong’s campaign committees claimed that the CDP endorsed or supported each candidate in their respective races. Under the CDP’s bylaws, county central committees — such as the DPOC — are part of the CDP, meaning endorsements made by the DPOC constitute endorsements by the CDP.
“DPOC has endorsed Councilmember Kathleen Treseder for re-election to Irvine City Council, District 6,” Hoffman said. “Accordingly, Councilmember Treseder is the endorsed candidate of both DPOC and the California Democratic Party in District 6. Scotty Hong is not endorsed by the California Democratic Party.”
Agran, who is currently up for reelection, told New University that the cease-and-desist letter misled the public on the messaging behind the advertisement.
“The cease-and-desist letter asserted something that was untrue,” Agran told New University. “Never did we say that the Democrats Party endorsed us. That word endorsement was never used.”
The advertisement was a joint promotion of Agran’s campaign, Hong’s campaign, and Proposition 1, a proposed $100 million state housing bond that would bring downpayment funds for first time homebuyers, money for rental assistance and over 1,000 units of student housing.
In the advertisement, the words “Supported by the California Democratic Party” are present under a brief description of Proposition 1. The Proposition is included in the CDP’s list of endorsed proposals for the upcoming election.
“We want our campaigns linked to Proposition 1, and the statement of support by the California Democratic Party is to signal people that they support Proposition 1,” Agran said.
Treseder, who is also a professor at UCI’s School of Biological Sciences, told New University that she was initially shocked to hear about the campaign mailer’s actions.
“I couldn’t believe that they would lie about something so blatant and that’s so easy to disprove,” Treseder said. “Not everybody is going to have the wherewithal to go and check the actual official party endorsement website, and I’m sure they were counting on a lot of people being fooled by this.”
The DPOC endorsed mayoral candidates in Anaheim, Costa Mesa, Garden Grove, Santa Ana, San Clemente, Tustin and Westminster for the upcoming elections. However, the organization has not endorsed a candidate in Irvine’s mayoral race, and maintains that the campaigner’s claims misrepresent the CDP’s decisions.
“As Democrats nationally battle against the lies and misinformation coming from the Trump Administration, it’s unfortunate that Larry has decided to use these same Trumpian tactics in his campaign,” Hoffman said in a press release.
According to Division 20, Chapter 1 of the 2007 California Elections Code, candidates and committees cannot claim support or an endorsement from a political party with which the candidate is not affiliated. Under the same law, local endorsements may only be issued by the organization itself, not independent campaigners. Members of state or county central committees may also take legal action against misrepresented endorsements.
Treseder told New University how important credible endorsements from the DPOC are for candidates running for the upcoming elections in influencing voter choices.
“In my district, folks vote about 80% Democratic, and so the Democratic Party endorsement is a signifier for voters that a candidate votes with Democratic values,” Treseder said.
Hong, whose campaign committee enrolls local volunteers and college students, told New University that he takes value in endorsements from residents instead of support exclusively given from county central committees.
“I only seek real endorsements from residents,” Hong told New University. “I want to hear [their] concerns and problems, and that’s why I’m running, to address those concerns for these individuals that I’m representing.”
In the letter, Hoffman demands that Agran and Hong’s campaign committees stop producing and distributing any campaign materials that falsely depict the candidates as being supported by either the CDP or the DPOC. The letter also calls for false endorsement claims published on campaign websites and social media accounts to be revised or removed.
Hoffman further demands Hong to notify recipients of the mailer that Treseder is the endorsed candidate for the Irvine City Council District 6. Agran is also required to clarify that neither the CDP nor the DPOC has endorsed a candidate in Irvine’s mayoral race.
“The DPOC will take appropriate steps to protect the integrity of its endorsements and ensure that voters receive accurate information,” Hoffman said. “Voters deserve truthful information about the Democratic Party’s endorsements.”
Last June, the Irvine City Council called for a general municipal election to elect a mayor and one councilmember each for Districts 1, 5 and 6 on Nov. 3, 2026. Agran is running for re-election against candidate Maksim Egorov, while Hong is challenging incumbent Treseder for District 6.
“Students here are born with this right, this privilege, and they should not take this for granted,” Hong told New University. “By voting, by collaborating, the students and residents here reinforce working with the government. We reinforce each other, and that’s critical.”
More information on voting center locations and registration processes can be found on the OC Vote’s official website.
Tariq Abdelkarim is a News Staff Writer for the fall 2026 quarter. He can be reached at tabdelka@uci.edu.
Edited by Anika Denny and Riley Schnittger.
