A lawsuit filed against the Irvine city clerk alleges that former city councilmember and current council candidate Tammy Kim is not a District 5 resident, and, therefore, should not be allowed to appear on the ballot for this April’s special election.
In a phone call with The Orange County Register Monday morning, Kim denied the allegation.
“I legally live in District 5,” she said. “I believe firmly that this is a coordinated political attack against me.”
Kim is listed on the city clerk’s website as one of four “official candidates” for the upcoming District 5 city council election.
Ron Scolesdang, a mayoral candidate in 2024 and District 5 resident, is suing City Clerk Carl Peterson in his professional capacity with the aim of having a court order preventing Kim from running in this election.
Orange County Superior Court Judge Craig L. Griffin will oversee an ex parte hearing on Wednesday during which Scolesdang will argue for the judge to block Kim’s name from appearing on the ballot.
The Irvine City Council was briefed on the case during a regularly scheduled closed-session meeting last week.
Registered voters in District 5 are slated to receive a voter information guide and vote-by-mail ballot beginning the week of March 17.
It is unclear when ballots are scheduled to be printed.
A letter to the clerk from Scolesdang’s attorney, Brian Hildreth, alleges Kim lives in District 3 and registered a “sham address” in District 5 to run in the special election.
The letter says a licensed private investigator observed Kim’s purported District 5 address over a span of a few weeks and not once witnessed Kim visit or sleep there.
California law requires city council candidates to live in the district they run to represent.
Kim previously served on the City Council as an at-large representative from 2020 through 2024. She ran for mayor in 2024, losing to Larry Agran. Irvine switched from at-large to district council representation last year.
Agran’s mayor win left open his council seat, prompting the city to hold the District 5 election earlier than planned. The winner’s term will be up in 2026 when the seat was originally scheduled to be on the ballot.
