Los Alamitos mayor leads in support for Assembly election

Five candidates are vying for the newly redrawn 72nd Assembly District.

Though it's hard to call a frontrunner in the crowded local race, Los Alamitos Mayor Troy Edgar is raking in high-profile Republican support.

Edgar, who was a registered Democrat until 2006, has gotten endorsements from a long list of conservative politicians, including Huntington Beach Mayor Don Hansen and Councilmen Devin Dwyer and Matthew Harper, Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Costa Mesa), Assemblyman Allan Mansoor (R-Costa Mesa), Sen. Tom Harman (R-Costa Mesa), Orange County Supervisor John Moorlach and Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas.

Edgar, 45, who owns a construction company, is running against two Republicans and two Democrats.

He, along with Travis Allen, 38, who runs an investment company, and Long Pham, 61, a nuclear scientist for Southern California Edison and a member of the Orange County Board of Education, opposes tax hikes and is running on a platform of job creation and helping small businesses.

Democrat and Garden Grove Planning Commissioner Joe Dovinh, 43, who is also a business owner and general contractor, is the only candidate to have expressed support for Gov. Jerry Brown's temporary tax-hike proposal, which is on the November ballot.

"Nobody wants to be taxed," he said. "But if you're raising taxes for a specific purpose that will help education and public safety, then I support that. It's a bitter pill we sometimes have to take to get back on our feet."

Dovinh, who ran unsuccessfully in 2010 for the 68th Assembly District seat, was endorsed by the California Democratic Party.

The 72nd Assembly District, which covers parts of Fountain Valley, Huntington Beach, Garden Grove, Los Alamitos, Seal Beach and Santa Ana, has a large Asian population. Both Pham and Dovinh, who are of Vietnamese descent, hope to capture the Asian vote.

Democrat Albert Ayala, an 88-year-old retired police commander, does not have a campaign website and could not be reached for comment.

Edgar, who served in the Navy, trumpets his more than 25 years experience in business consulting for various Fortune 500 companies and industries, including aerospace, technology, entertainment, government and financial services.

He said his experience as a small business owner, a job creator and a council member gives him a unique advantage over the other candidates.

"I feel there's a lot the state can do to help small businesses grow and become the engine for revenue," he said.