Donald P. (Don) Wagner
Candidate for Secretary of State
Donald P. 'Don' Wagner is the Republican pick for Secretary of State. He has served on the Orange County Board of Supervisors since 2019. He represents the Third District. That covers Irvine, Tustin, Orange, and Yorba Linda. He was born December 3, 1960, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Wagner moved to California as a child. He earned a bachelor's degree in English, from UCLA. He earned a law degree in 1987, from UC Hastings. He joined the state bar that same year. He has worked since as a business lawyer. His elected career began on a local board: trustee of the South Orange County Community College District. He served three terms there. He spent six years as its board president. He was elected to the state Assembly in 2010. He represented the 70th District, from 2010 to 2012. After lines were redrawn, he held the 68th District, 2012 to 2016. He was vice chair of the Judiciary Committee there. He was Mayor of Irvine, from December 2016 to March 2019. He resigned that post after winning a special election. That March 2019 vote put him on the Board of Supervisors. He was re-elected in 2020 and again in 2024. Colleagues picked him as board chairman in both 2023 and 2024. Wagner announced his run for Secretary of State on July 30, 2025. He was the first Republican to enter the race. Two former GOP Secretaries of State, Bill Jones and Bruce McPherson, co-chair his campaign. His campaign stresses election rules. That includes voter ID, cleaning up voter rolls, and faster vote counts. He also wants to modernize the office's business-filing and records systems. In the June 2, 2026 primary he came in second, among four hopefuls. He got 3,187,180 votes (36.7%). He now faces incumbent Shirley N. Weber, a Democrat, on November 3, 2026. She got 5,092,491 votes (58.7%) in the primary. Wagner and his wife, Megan, have lived in the Irvine area since 1991. They raised three kids there. Born December 3, 1960. Home: Irvine/Orange County area, California. Job: Orange County Supervisor, Third District. He is also a business lawyer. Prior office: He is a challenger, not the incumbent. Orange County Board of Supervisors, Third District, since 2019. He was board chair in 2023 and 2024. Mayor of Irvine, 2016-2019. State Assembly, 2010-2016: 70th District, 2010-2012, then 68th District, 2012-2016. South Orange County Community College District trustee, three terms; exact years not confirmed.
On the issues
- Government, Elections & Democracy
Says California's election system should prioritize security, efficiency, accuracy, and accessibility for every eligible voter.
“Californians deserve an excellent election system that is secure, efficient, accurate and accessible to every eligible voter.”
Source → - Government, Elections & Democracy
Supports requiring voters to show identification to vote and backs the statewide voter-ID initiative headed for the 2026 ballot.
Source → - Government, Elections & Democracy
Wants California to count and certify election results faster, arguing the current roughly 30-day window undermines public trust in the outcome.
“is that really a fair election?”
Source → - Government, Elections & Democracy
Says business owners have had trouble filing documents and processing records through the Secretary of State's office and points to that as evidence the office needs better management.
“I've heard from business owners around the state about problems in the secretary of state's office hampering their ability to file documents, process records or fix widespread fraud”
Source → - Government, Elections & Democracy
Criticizes the Secretary of State's office for failing to build a robust CalACCESS system to track and publicly disclose campaign finance filings, calling it wasted public money.
“the current secretary of state has failed to provide a robust CalACCESS system to track and publicly disclose campaign filings, wasting tens of millions of dollars in the process”
Source →
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