Final tally is in: 18 Korean American candidates elected

November 6, 2014
Irvine Mayor Choi Seok-ho, left, and Orange County Supervisor Michelle Park Steel celebrate their general election victories Tuesday night. (Park Sang-hyuk/The Korea Times)

Irvine Mayor Choi Seok-ho, left, and Orange County Supervisor Michelle Park Steel celebrate their general election victories Tuesday night. (Park Sang-hyuk/The Korea Times)

The final tally is in: Eighteen out of 26 Korean American candidates saw victory in Tuesday’s general elections.

Notable among victors were Southern California candidates Young Kim, a Republican for the State Assembly’s 65th District, and Michelle Park Steel, another Republican who clinched the Orange County Supervisor seat for the 2nd District.

Newly re-elected Irvine Mayor Choi Seok-ho said he would work toward completing projects including parks, libraries and road infrastructure during his term.

“As mayor, my most important role is to maintain Irvine’s high quality of life,” Choi said.

According to the California Secretary of State’s website, voter turnout in this election was just under 30 percent.

2014 General Election results for Korean American candidates across the U.S.:

Candidate Seat Election
Southern California
Michelle Park Steel Orange County Supervisor, District 2 YES
Young Kim State Assembly, District 65 YES
Choi Seok-ho Irvine Mayor YES
Peter Choi State Senate, District 24 NO
Ken Park State Assembly, District 60 NO
Steve Hwangbo La Palma City Council YES
Sandra Lee Cypress School District School Board YES
Michael Kim Brea City Council NO
Josh Lee Chino Valley Unified School District Board of Education NO
Carol Kim San Diego City Council NO
Northern California
Jane Kim San Francisco City Council YES
Andrew Park Oakland City Council NO
New Jersey
Roy Cho 5th Congressional District NO
Peter Suh Fort Lee City Council YES
Chris Jung Palisades Park City Council YES
Gloria Oh Borough of Englewood Cliffs YES
New York
Ron Kim State Assembly, District 40 YES
Maryland
David Moon State Assembly, District 20 YES
Mark Chang State Assembly, District 32 YES
Georgia
B.J. Pak State Assembly, District 32 YES
John Park Brookhaven City Council YES
Washington
Cindy Ryu State Assembly, District 32 YES
Shari Song State Senate, District 30 NO
Hawaii
Sylvia Luke State Assembly, District 25 YES
Sharon Har State Assembly, District 42 YES
Michigan
John Choi Ramsey County Attorney YES

One Comment

  1. Roy Allmond

    November 7, 2014 at 6:38 PM

    Aigoo! So much emphasis on national origin? I doubt the voters are carrying a checklist. Saying black president, check! Korean mayor… Check! Jewish dog catcher .:. Check

    All that matters is their cabilities to do the job. I hope that Korea times celebrate with me when I win a position.