She would have had my support if she advocated for peace. Being pro-Israel seems to mean continuing to write blank checks for what? To kill every last Palestinian? Staring a war with Iran? She sounds just like Young Kim. No thanks, I see no difference between them. Those of us who love America should listen to voices like Bernie Sanders, Zohran Mamdani, and embrace peace. More of our tax dollars should be spent here in America, focusing on education, housing, healthcare, public transportation, and yes, affordable groceries.
Unfortunately your views do not work in the real world against thugs and mass murderers like Putin, Xi, and Khameini. You definitely do not want to chase wars but you need to confront the monsters (mentioned above) with plenty of deterrence. The Mamdanis and Magas of the world both need to go.
Thanks so much for meeting with her and writing this piece. I’ll have to write this to her and her team as well (in case they don’t read this). There are progressives here in 40 who are not happy with her pro-Israel (the govt) stance and her campaign, and her having a young/hip social media vibe is not going to fix that. In 40, we want a candidate who can assure safety and support for both Israeli and Palestinian people. I know it’s a hard message to convey— but she/her team should start by trying to connect with the progressive groups here.
And does it pragmatically make a difference in our district? Yes… people are more aware than they were in the last election. Activism is up including from progressives. ICE is raiding our communities. Our district may not be as active or loud but we will be voting and will be picky.
My advice stands for all candidates in 40. I do really hope we can coalesce around someone. They don’t need to be perfect but I’d like to see someone who can at least somewhat unify us a bit better.
I appreciate your perspective on this. My only exposure to her is her posts that start with, "...I'm a mom, an entrepreneur, and a problem-solver...". I dropped her a note in reply on FB telling her that an intro like that doesn't inspire confidence. Your article has uncovered that she's wealthy, an art dealer, and only recently moved into OC. That last one doesn't give me much pause because there are lots of instances where candidates and members don't even live in their districts so the fact that she moved is a bonus. The rest of it? I'm going to need some convincing. I don't see wealthy and arty as being on the list of things a candidate must have on their CV. But despite my misgivings, I can be convinced. And I hope I will be.
She is clearly well meaning but stands absolutely no chance of winning the primary. Texas and New York? The definition of a carpetbagger, her ego and inexperience working with any legislative body will be trumpeted- yes, that word- by any opponent. A waste of time, energy, and most importantly, money that could be better used to support a viable candidate.
Her heart is in the right place, but in her despair the question she should've been asking is "How can I save democracy?" Googling how to run for congress shows the lack of knowledge about what it takes to represent constituents, especially when you live in another county. Then taking that motivation to shop for a flippable seat should've taken her to Ken Calvert's district. Will Rollins is not running a 3rd time after losing twice by a razor thin margin. Ken Calvert is much easier to hate than Young Kim. He has made millions "representing" CA41 and his voting record is worse. Perhaps there were no cities in the I.E. that she wanted to live in? She chose to relocate to Coto De Caza. This seat could be the one that flips the majority and allows us to be rid of the orange monster by impeaching him. If she TRULY wanted to save democracy, she would have invested her money in the candidate who made this seat flippable instead of dividing up our precious resources and maybe even given some to CA41 to help get 2 seats flipped. The same goes for Perry Meade. We have a candidate who beat the school board candidate in the primary and I'm very confident he will win the primary again. The opportunists are taking resources away from flipping this seat to satisfy their own egos. We have awful MAGA school board members, city council members, and no Democrats ran for State Assembly in my district. They would be helping democracy more if they ran for one of those seats. There is a new candidate who lives in RSM running against Dave Min who should start with their city council, not compete against the incumbent Democrat! It's so frustrating. Also, I have to share that Esther Kim Varet accused me of "spewing lies" on one of her hundreds of donation ads on social media. I never got a response when I asked her to correct me. If she can't resolve issues with one of her potential constituents, how is she going to function in Congress?
Her vibes are just so off. While I think voting on vibes rather than actual substance got us into this situation, she just gives off a mix of arrogance, indignation, and elitism that rubs me the wrong way (and I grew up in Mission Viejo as a Republican, so I was surrounded by arrogance, indignation and elitism).
Joe Kerr over the Netanyahu supporting carpetbagger. And what is her stance on even bigger problems. Mad Vlad (our biggest threat abroad)and tariffs which are wrecking our economy.
I've donated to her because I think she has what it takes to beat young Kim. Good at fundraising, attractive, smart, well educated, bougie enough for South County soccer moms, Korean enough for the 20% Asian population in the District. With 12% of those <65 on medicaid and Laguna Woods in the District--Young Kim is endangered. I am in.
Your comment makes me realize I might be an “ideal” Esther Kim Varet voter so to speak, since I live in the district and am an Asian college graduate South County soccer mom who is a couple years younger than her. But i have my reservations… i’ll keep my mind open. There’s actually an upcoming meet and greet for the candidates coming up that i’m sure jeff will go to 😁
Me personally, I want to do my due diligence before deciding and that means giving her a good faith chance (probably will reach out to her at a meet and greet). I’m not feeling optimistic.
I wish I could go to ask her in person to correct me on any lies she accused me of "spewing" on her donation ads. Unfortunately, I can't make it to the meet and greet.
That’s a huge reservation I have about her (plus my doubt that she’s as pro-Palestinian as she claims she is). I’m totally willing to hear her out on these reservations but so far she’s been hostile to people who she should be civil with. Like, I get that she’s not going to agree with us all and that’s fine. But for communication to get this dirty this early in the campaign? Come on.
I wish Perry Meade was getting as much visibility. We know Kerr never got the visibility. And I know that no campaign and no candidate is perfect, we aren’t asking for that. But so far, she’s at the bottom of my list for 40.
I have been working really hard to get a Democrat elected to the new boundaries of CA40 for years now. This seat is so important, I wish we could just keep the momentum going from the last election instead of having time and resources spent on competing against each other. Where we should focus is on getting more democrats registered so that the national organizations and grassroots groups see this as a flippable district. Then we all need to support whoever wins the primary so we can beat Young Kim. I am being bombarded by social media ads for donations and it's not how we are going to flip this seat in my humble opinion. But thank you so much for caring about your old district and getting rid of DJT!!!
She would have had my support if she advocated for peace. Being pro-Israel seems to mean continuing to write blank checks for what? To kill every last Palestinian? Staring a war with Iran? She sounds just like Young Kim. No thanks, I see no difference between them. Those of us who love America should listen to voices like Bernie Sanders, Zohran Mamdani, and embrace peace. More of our tax dollars should be spent here in America, focusing on education, housing, healthcare, public transportation, and yes, affordable groceries.
Unfortunately your views do not work in the real world against thugs and mass murderers like Putin, Xi, and Khameini. You definitely do not want to chase wars but you need to confront the monsters (mentioned above) with plenty of deterrence. The Mamdanis and Magas of the world both need to go.
The question you should have asked.
Why isn't she running for the seat where she lived in the 2024 election?
Why did she decide to run for a seat that is 10 districts away from where she lived just 6ish months ago?
She has not lived in the district long enough to know anything about it.
Thanks so much for meeting with her and writing this piece. I’ll have to write this to her and her team as well (in case they don’t read this). There are progressives here in 40 who are not happy with her pro-Israel (the govt) stance and her campaign, and her having a young/hip social media vibe is not going to fix that. In 40, we want a candidate who can assure safety and support for both Israeli and Palestinian people. I know it’s a hard message to convey— but she/her team should start by trying to connect with the progressive groups here.
And does it pragmatically make a difference in our district? Yes… people are more aware than they were in the last election. Activism is up including from progressives. ICE is raiding our communities. Our district may not be as active or loud but we will be voting and will be picky.
My advice stands for all candidates in 40. I do really hope we can coalesce around someone. They don’t need to be perfect but I’d like to see someone who can at least somewhat unify us a bit better.
A "progressive" will not take that district. No chance.
Oh i agree, i don’t expect the candidate to be progressive. But they should be someone who can have a positive working relationship with them.
Agree. I hope Kerr wins the primary though.
I am worried he is not getting enough publicity and support, just like last time. I’d happily support him as i did last time.
I appreciate your perspective on this. My only exposure to her is her posts that start with, "...I'm a mom, an entrepreneur, and a problem-solver...". I dropped her a note in reply on FB telling her that an intro like that doesn't inspire confidence. Your article has uncovered that she's wealthy, an art dealer, and only recently moved into OC. That last one doesn't give me much pause because there are lots of instances where candidates and members don't even live in their districts so the fact that she moved is a bonus. The rest of it? I'm going to need some convincing. I don't see wealthy and arty as being on the list of things a candidate must have on their CV. But despite my misgivings, I can be convinced. And I hope I will be.
She is clearly well meaning but stands absolutely no chance of winning the primary. Texas and New York? The definition of a carpetbagger, her ego and inexperience working with any legislative body will be trumpeted- yes, that word- by any opponent. A waste of time, energy, and most importantly, money that could be better used to support a viable candidate.
Her heart is in the right place, but in her despair the question she should've been asking is "How can I save democracy?" Googling how to run for congress shows the lack of knowledge about what it takes to represent constituents, especially when you live in another county. Then taking that motivation to shop for a flippable seat should've taken her to Ken Calvert's district. Will Rollins is not running a 3rd time after losing twice by a razor thin margin. Ken Calvert is much easier to hate than Young Kim. He has made millions "representing" CA41 and his voting record is worse. Perhaps there were no cities in the I.E. that she wanted to live in? She chose to relocate to Coto De Caza. This seat could be the one that flips the majority and allows us to be rid of the orange monster by impeaching him. If she TRULY wanted to save democracy, she would have invested her money in the candidate who made this seat flippable instead of dividing up our precious resources and maybe even given some to CA41 to help get 2 seats flipped. The same goes for Perry Meade. We have a candidate who beat the school board candidate in the primary and I'm very confident he will win the primary again. The opportunists are taking resources away from flipping this seat to satisfy their own egos. We have awful MAGA school board members, city council members, and no Democrats ran for State Assembly in my district. They would be helping democracy more if they ran for one of those seats. There is a new candidate who lives in RSM running against Dave Min who should start with their city council, not compete against the incumbent Democrat! It's so frustrating. Also, I have to share that Esther Kim Varet accused me of "spewing lies" on one of her hundreds of donation ads on social media. I never got a response when I asked her to correct me. If she can't resolve issues with one of her potential constituents, how is she going to function in Congress?
Her vibes are just so off. While I think voting on vibes rather than actual substance got us into this situation, she just gives off a mix of arrogance, indignation, and elitism that rubs me the wrong way (and I grew up in Mission Viejo as a Republican, so I was surrounded by arrogance, indignation and elitism).
Heck I would even try to get Katie Porter back for this one if you wanted someone from the greater OC to run.
Joe Kerr over the Netanyahu supporting carpetbagger. And what is her stance on even bigger problems. Mad Vlad (our biggest threat abroad)and tariffs which are wrecking our economy.
I've donated to her because I think she has what it takes to beat young Kim. Good at fundraising, attractive, smart, well educated, bougie enough for South County soccer moms, Korean enough for the 20% Asian population in the District. With 12% of those <65 on medicaid and Laguna Woods in the District--Young Kim is endangered. I am in.
Your comment makes me realize I might be an “ideal” Esther Kim Varet voter so to speak, since I live in the district and am an Asian college graduate South County soccer mom who is a couple years younger than her. But i have my reservations… i’ll keep my mind open. There’s actually an upcoming meet and greet for the candidates coming up that i’m sure jeff will go to 😁
Thanks for your work. I wish the field would narrow soon and expect more Dems to get to the polls for midterms.
Gonna leave this here in the spirit of sharing knowledge. This group opposes Esther. https://www.instagram.com/ocforjustice?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ== You can read their posts and interactions with her and decide for yourself.
Me personally, I want to do my due diligence before deciding and that means giving her a good faith chance (probably will reach out to her at a meet and greet). I’m not feeling optimistic.
I wish I could go to ask her in person to correct me on any lies she accused me of "spewing" on her donation ads. Unfortunately, I can't make it to the meet and greet.
That’s a huge reservation I have about her (plus my doubt that she’s as pro-Palestinian as she claims she is). I’m totally willing to hear her out on these reservations but so far she’s been hostile to people who she should be civil with. Like, I get that she’s not going to agree with us all and that’s fine. But for communication to get this dirty this early in the campaign? Come on.
I wish Perry Meade was getting as much visibility. We know Kerr never got the visibility. And I know that no campaign and no candidate is perfect, we aren’t asking for that. But so far, she’s at the bottom of my list for 40.
I did for 24 years, but moved in 2016 to Whittier to be closer to a 98 y/o mother and new grandbabies.
I have been working really hard to get a Democrat elected to the new boundaries of CA40 for years now. This seat is so important, I wish we could just keep the momentum going from the last election instead of having time and resources spent on competing against each other. Where we should focus is on getting more democrats registered so that the national organizations and grassroots groups see this as a flippable district. Then we all need to support whoever wins the primary so we can beat Young Kim. I am being bombarded by social media ads for donations and it's not how we are going to flip this seat in my humble opinion. But thank you so much for caring about your old district and getting rid of DJT!!!
Why do you think she'll easily beat Perry Meade in the primary?
I understand the reservations many have about her, but none of the other potential candidates inspire me.
I always say, voting shouldn't be a Valentine. It should be a chess move!