David Kunnghee Min[1] (born March 5, 1976)[2] is an American lawyer and politician. A member of the Democratic Party he serves as the state senator for California's 37th Senate district, which includes portions of Orange County.[3] He was an assistant law professor at the University of California, Irvine School of Law before he was elected to the California State Senate.[4]
Dave Min | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member-elect of the U.S. House of Representatives from California's 47th district | |
| Assuming office January 3, 2025 | |
| Succeeding | Katie Porter |
| Member of the California Senate from the 37th district | |
| In office December 7, 2020 – November 30, 2024 | |
| Preceded by | John Moorlach |
| Succeeded by | Steven Choi |
| Personal details | |
| Born | March 5, 1976 Providence, Rhode Island, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse |
Jane Stoever (m. 2005) |
| Children | 3 |
| Education | University of Pennsylvania (BS) Harvard University (JD) |
| Website | Campaign website |
Min ran in the 2018 election to represent California's 45th congressional district but was defeated in the nonpartisan blanket primary by incumbent Congresswoman Mimi Walters and fellow UC Irvine professor Katie Porter, who went on to defeat Walters in the general election.[5] He was elected to the state senate in the 2020 elections after defeating Costa Mesa mayor and future Orange County Board of Supervisors member Katrina Foley in the primary and then by narrowly defeating incumbent Republican John Moorlach in the November election.[6]
Min defeated Republican nominee Scott Baugh in the 2024 election to represent California's 47th congressional district.[7]
Biography
editBorn in Providence, Rhode Island to Korean American parents who immigrated to the United States in 1972 to pursue doctoral degrees at Brown University, Min grew up in Palo Alto in the San Francisco Bay Area.[8] He went to the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School of Business and School of Arts and Sciences, where he received his undergraduate degrees in 1999.[9] Min attended Harvard Law School, where he got his J.D.[10]
Prior to his election to the California State Senate, Min was an assistant law professor at the University of California, Irvine (UCI). He focused on the law and policy of banking, capital markets, and real estate finance.[11][12] He testified about the impact of Dodd-Frank Financial Regulations to the House Financial Services Subcommittee in 2012.[13][better source needed]
Min passed the February 2022 California bar exam.[14]
Political career
editAfter graduating from Harvard Law School, Min worked in financial regulation. Min was a staff attorney at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Banking Committee counsel for Sen. Chuck Schumer[15][16] and counsel and senior policy advisor for the United States Congress Joint Economic Committee,[11] until becoming the associate director for Financial Markets Policy at the think tank Center for American Progress.[17][18] There he supervised the Mortgage Finance Working Group.[19]
2018 congressional campaign
editMin announced his House candidacy on April 5, 2017, challenging incumbent Rep. Mimi Walters in California's 45th congressional district.[20] Min stated he was inspired to run for Congress after President Donald Trump temporarily suspended immigration from certain predominantly Muslim countries, which he said was a "slap in the face" to the son of two immigrants.[21] Min said there is a new "groundswell of political consciousness" nationally among Korean Americans, with people starting to feel comfortable enough to enter politics.[22]
Min received the endorsement of the California Democratic Party at its State Convention in February 2018 after a contentious floor fight where he barely received the necessary 60% of the vote.[23][24]
Min criticized Walters for living outside of the district and for refusing to hold public or in-person town halls.[8] Min came in third place in the primary election behind Walters and Katie Porter.[5] Porter went on to win the general election.
2020 State Senate campaign
editOn January 9, 2019, Min announced his campaign against State Senator John Moorlach to represent the California's 37th State Senate district.[25] In the primary election, Min defeated Costa Mesa Mayor Katrina Foley, thus advancing to the general election to face Moorlach.[26]
Min narrowly defeated Moorlach in the fall of 2020 with 51.2% of the vote.[27] He assumed office on December 7, 2020. His term lasts four years.[28]
While in office, Min introduced legislation related to violence, including bills to expand protections for survivors of domestic abuse, study harassment on California's transit systems, make child custody cases private by default, and reduce gun shows and sales on state-owned property.[29][30][31][32][33]
Min also introduced legislation to facilitate the termination of offshore oil drilling leases in Orange County following the 2021 Huntington Beach oil spill, but it died following opposition from the oil industry and trade unions.[34] Some lawmakers, including Bob Hertzberg, expressed concerns about the cost of Min's proposed legislation.[35]
2024 congressional campaign
editMin announced a second campaign for Congress in January 2023, running for California's 47th congressional district.[36] Katie Porter, the incumbent representative who defeated Min in the 2018 congressional primary, vacated the seat to run in the 2024 United States Senate election in California and endorsed Min to succeed her.[37] After Min was arrested and convicted for a DUI, former representative Harley Rouda called for him to drop out of the race. Min declined to leave the race.
He finished second in the "top two" primary for CA-47 and advanced to the general election.[38] He faced Scott Baugh, a former assemblymember who was Porter's opponent in 2022. The Associated Press projected Min to be the winner of the election on November 13.[39]
Personal life
editMin is married to Jane Stoever, a clinical professor of law at UC Irvine.[40] She works on domestic violence issues.[41] They have three children.[8]
Min was arrested in Sacramento for drunk driving in 2023.[42] He had a blood alcohol level nearly twice the legal limit and did not have his headlights on when he was pulled over for driving through a red light.[43] Min pleaded no contest, and was sentenced to three years informal probation.[44]
Electoral history
edit2018
edit| Primary election | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
| Republican | Mimi Walters (incumbent) | 86,764 | 51.7 | |
| Democratic | Katie Porter | 34,078 | 20.3 | |
| Democratic | Dave Min | 29,979 | 17.8 | |
| Democratic | Brian Forde | 10,107 | 6.0 | |
| No party preference | John Graham | 3,817 | 2.3 | |
| Democratic | Kia Hamadanchy | 3,212 | 1.9 | |
| Total votes | 167,957 | 100.0 | ||
| General election | ||||
| Democratic | Katie Porter | 158,906 | 52.1 | |
| Republican | Mimi Walters (incumbent) | 146,383 | 47.9 | |
| Total votes | 305,289 | 100.0 | ||
| Democratic gain from Republican | ||||
2020
edit| Primary election | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
| Republican | John Moorlach (incumbent) | 132,275 | 47.3 | |
| Democratic | Dave Min | 78,293 | 28.0 | |
| Democratic | Katrina Foley | 68,952 | 24.7 | |
| Total votes | 279,520 | 100.0 | ||
| General election | ||||
| Democratic | Dave Min | 270,522 | 51.1 | |
| Republican | John Moorlach (incumbent) | 258,421 | 48.9 | |
| Total votes | 528,943 | 100.0 | ||
| Democratic gain from Republican | ||||
References
edit- ^ "Dave Min". March 2, 2024. Retrieved March 2, 2024.
- ^ "Dave Min Boosts Slim Lead over Katrina Foley for Second Spot on November Ballot in 37th State Senate District". Los Angeles Times. March 4, 2020. Retrieved November 11, 2020.
- ^ @DLCC (November 10, 2020). "BREAKING: @DaveMinCA just FLIPPED California's SD-37!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Cardine, Sara (February 10, 2021). "California lawmaker who once set sights on ending gun shows at O.C. fairgrounds now aims for statewide ban". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 17, 2023.
- ^ a b "2018 California general election results" (PDF). California Secretary of State. Retrieved November 11, 2020.
- ^ "Democrat Dave Min declares victory over GOP incumbent John Moorlach in 37th Senate District". Orange County Register. November 4, 2020.
- ^ Mason, Melanie (November 12, 2024). "Democrat Dave Min keeps Katie Porter's House seat blue". Politico.
- ^ a b c Namkung, Victoria (May 23, 2017). "'Policy Nerd' Dave Min Wants to Give Up Academia for a Seat in Congress". NBC News. Retrieved June 6, 2017.
- ^ https://fedsoc.org/contributors/david-min
- ^ "David Min". University of California, Irvine School of Law. Archived from the original on June 2, 2017. Retrieved June 7, 2017.
- ^ a b Coker, Matt (April 6, 2017). "David Min is Second Democrat UCI Law Professor to Challenge Rep. Mimi Walters". OC Weekly. Retrieved June 6, 2017.
- ^ Sloan, Karen (April 6, 2017). "2 UC Irvine Law Profs Compete for Congressional Seat". Law.com. Retrieved June 6, 2017.
- ^ "Impact of Dodd-Frank Financial Regulation Law". C-SPAN.org. Retrieved May 25, 2018.
- ^ "State Senator Among Lucky Few Who Passed California's February Bar Exam". The Recorder. Retrieved May 24, 2022.
- ^ Hagen, Lisa (April 26, 2017). "Dems crowd primaries to challenge GOP reps". The Hill. Retrieved June 6, 2017.
- ^ Dayen, David (February 27, 2018). "The Story Behind the California Democratic Party Convention's Floor Fracas". The Intercept. Retrieved May 25, 2018.
- ^ Wisckol, Martin (April 5, 2017). "Dave Min, a UC Irvine law professor, will challenge Rep. Mimi Walters". Orange County Register. Retrieved June 6, 2017.
- ^ Dong-chan, Jhoo (April 13, 2017). "Korean-American law professor runs for US Congress". The Korea Times. Retrieved June 6, 2017.
- ^ Dayen, David (May 25, 2018). "In a California House Race, THe Democratic Party's Candidate is Going to War Against Elizabeth Warren's". The Intercept. Retrieved May 25, 2018.
- ^ "Where Congressional Candidates from UCI Stand on Local and National Issues – New University". www.newuniversity.org. Retrieved May 25, 2018.
- ^ Summers, Juana. "Outraged by Trump, these candidates of color are now running for office". CNN. Retrieved May 25, 2018.
- ^ "California House Race Is a Test of Latino, Korean Influence". Associated Press. Retrieved June 7, 2017.
- ^ Mai-Duc, Christine (February 25, 2018). "Dave Min gets Democratic endorsement for Congress after intense fight on the convention floor". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 25, 2018.
- ^ Nwanevu, Osita. "California Is Not As Liberal As You Think". Slate Magazine. Retrieved May 25, 2018.
- ^ Graham, Jordan. "Democrat who lost D.C. bid in June says he'll try for Sacramento next". Orange County Register. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
- ^ "2020 California primary election results" (PDF). California Secretary of State. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
- ^ "Democrat Dave Min declares victory over GOP incumbent John Moorlach in 37th Senate District". Orange County Register. November 4, 2020. Retrieved November 29, 2020.
- ^ "2022 Election: New districts, new contenders for Orange County state seats". Orange County Register. March 17, 2022. Retrieved May 24, 2022.
- ^ "Proposed legislation aims to curb anti-Asian violence, harassment". spectrumnews1.com. Retrieved May 24, 2022.
- ^ "AAPI Heritage Month: 100 ways Asian Americans and allies are fighting hate crimes, violence". www.nbcnews.com. Retrieved May 24, 2022.
- ^ "Proposed law would make it tough for abusive parents to get unsupervised visits with their kids". Orange County Register. August 27, 2021. Retrieved May 24, 2022.
- ^ Cardine, Sara (February 4, 2022). "Bill targeting gun shows, sales on state-owned fairgrounds reintroduced by O.C. senator". Daily Pilot. Retrieved May 24, 2022.
- ^ "Domestic violence victims would get new protections under bills from State Sen. Dave Min". Orange County Register. February 17, 2021. Retrieved May 24, 2022.
- ^ Willon, Phil (May 20, 2022). "California lawmakers kill plans to ban oil drilling in state-controlled waters". San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved May 24, 2022.
- ^ Willon, Phil (April 27, 2022). "Push to limit California offshore oil after O.C. spill threatened by high taxpayers costs". Daily Pilot. Retrieved May 24, 2022.
- ^ Nguyen, Lily (January 19, 2023). "State Sen. Dave Min announces bid for congressional seat in coastal Orange County". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 6, 2023.
- ^ Gans, Jared (January 18, 2023). "Dave Min announces bid for Porter's California House seat, nabs her endorsement". The Hill. Retrieved May 5, 2023.
- ^ "California 47th Congressional District Primary Election Results". The New York Times. March 5, 2024. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved November 14, 2024.
- ^ "AP Race Call: Democrat Dave Min wins election to U.S. House in California's 47th Congressional District". AP News. November 14, 2024. Retrieved November 14, 2024.
- ^ "Jane K. Stoever". University of California, Irvine School of Law. Retrieved June 8, 2017.
- ^ Bowman, Bridget (May 24, 2018). "Could Negative Campaigning in California Primaries Dampen Democratic Energy?". Roll Call. Retrieved May 25, 2018.
- ^ White, Jeremy B. (May 3, 2023). "California lawmaker running for Congress is arrested for drunk driving". Politico. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
- ^ Ramos, Richard (May 24, 2023). "CHP releases video of state Senator Dave Min's DUI arrest in Sacramento - CBS Sacramento". www.cbsnews.com. Retrieved June 20, 2023.
- ^ "Convicted criminal Dave Min should drop out of Orange County congressional race". Orange County Register. Retrieved January 17, 2024.