Special election to be held for Southern California senatorial district in April 

A special election to fill the vacancy in California’s 36^th Senate District – which encompasses coastal Orange County – will be held in April, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office said Wednesday. 

The seat is vacant after Janet Nguyen was elected to the Orange County Board of Supervisors, replacing Andrew Do, who resigned from his position as 1^st District Supervisor after agreeing to plead guilty to federal corruption charges in October. 

Nguyen had previously served on the O.C. Board of Supervisors from 2007 to 2014 and had been sworn in as the 36^th District Senator in 2022.  

After winning her first race 17 years ago by a mere seven votes, Nguyen became the first female supervisor to represent the 1^st District, the first Asian American and Vietnamese American to serve on the board, and she is also the youngest person to be elected supervisor in county history. 

The special election is set for April 29, 2025, with the primaries being held on Feb. 25.

Another special election for the same day was scheduled by Newsom for California’s 32^nd Assembly District, which includes parts of Kern and Tulare counties in the Central Valley; it was redistricted from the 34^th District in 2022.  

Vince Fong, the previous assemblymember, resigned to run for the U.S. House of Representatives despite being re-elected this past November, leaving the seat vacant.