California State Superintendent Of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond Endorses Dave Min for Congress
Former UC Irvine Law Professor Min, A Proud Product Of California Public Schools, Whose Children Attend Public Schools In The District, Has Been A Champion For Students, Teachers, And Safe Classrooms
IRVINE, CA — Today, California State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond endorsed Dave Min in his campaign for California’s 47th Congressional District. Dave Min currently serves in the California State Senate and was formerly a law professor at the University of California, Irvine School of Law. Senator Min, who was elected in 2020, is the child of Korean immigrants and was the proud product of California public schools, which he attended from kindergarten through high school. He currently has three young children in the Irvine Unified School District, which is the largest school district in CA-47. Because of Dave’s lived experience of California public education being a pathway to economic opportunity, Dave has been a champion for our public schools in the State Senate, including serving as one of only four members of the Budget Subcommittee on Education, which oversees funding for K-12 schools, community colleges, the California State University system, and the University of California.
“I’m proud to support Dave Min in his campaign for the 47th Congressional District,” said California Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond. “As a father of three young kids in public school, who was himself the product of California public schools and a former UC Irvine educator, Dave is uniquely equipped to understand both the importance of education in achieving the American Dream and also the challenges that we face in trying to promote high quality public education. Whether it’s his work to protect our schools from gun violence or his efforts to expand educational opportunity, Dave has fought tirelessly for students, families, and teachers throughout his career. We need his voice in Congress.”
Tony Thurmond is the twenty-eighth California State Superintendent of Public Instruction overseeing California’s Department of Education and more than seven million children and young adults in more than 9,000 schools. The CDE and the State Superintendent of Public Instruction are responsible for enforcing education law and regulations; and for continuing to reform and improve public elementary school programs, secondary school programs, adult education, some preschool programs, and child care programs. Thurmond, a former state Assemblyman, and school board member, has overseen historic investments to return to safe in-person instruction, the expansion of universal school meals, universal prekindergarten, and mental health support to both families, and teachers.
On the State Senate Budget Subcommittee on Education, Senator Min has expanded early childhood education, tackled food insecurity among school children, and launched innovative programs to address COVID-related learning loss. Min has has authored 16 bills signed into law by the Governor, including SB 312, which expands access to higher education for foster youth, and SB 1299, which invested in programs designed to expand opportunities in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) to middle and high school students. Min is also the author of critical gun safety legislation as schools and communities across the country are savaged by gun violence.
Min’s Congressional campaign has been endorsed by 17 school board and community college board trustees in the district. Min was previously endorsed in his 2020 campaign for State Senate by the California Teachers Association, the California Federation of Teachers, the California School Employees Association, and the California Faculty Association, among others.
The only Korea-American in the legislature, Min serves as Chair of the Senate Natural Resources and Water Committee and as Senate Vice Chair of the Asian and Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus. He previously chaired the Senate Cybersecurity Select Committee. Before entering the State Senate, Min was a law professor at UC Irvine, where he taught and researched in the area of business law. He resides with his wife Jane, a UC Irvine law professor who specializes in domestic violence and family law, and their three children in Irvine. Dave is a native Californian, a product of California public schools who graduated from the Wharton School and Harvard Law School, and an Eagle Scout.
California’s 47th is an open Congressional District in Orange County that includes the Cities of Costa Mesa, Huntington Beach, Irvine, Newport Beach, and Seal Beach, and portions of Laguna Beach, Laguna Hills, and Laguna Woods. Incumbent Katie Porter is vacating the seat to run for U.S. Senate. In 2022, Porter defeated former Assemblymember Republican Scott Baugh by 3.44% in this “toss-up” district. State Senator Dave Min currently represents over 80% of Congressional District 47 in Sacramento. In 2020, Min received over 158,000 votes within CA-47, defeating incumbent John Moorlach by 4.3%. 19% of the registered voters in CA-47 are of Asian and Pacific Islander descent, including one of the largest Korean-American populations in the country.
