Irvine voters will choose a mayor and City Council representatives in districts 1, 5 and 6 on Nov. 3, with candidates emphasizing issues that include public safety, housing and development, transportation, environmental policy, neighborhood services and city finances.
Irvine’s municipal races are nonpartisan, meaning party labels do not appear on the ballot. Political organizations may still endorse candidates, but this guide describes those endorsements as campaign facts rather than assigning partisan labels to the candidates.
The City of Irvine says the regular nomination period closed Aug. 7. The city’s official nominee information lists the candidates discussed below. The field can still change in one respect: qualified write-in candidates may file between Sept. 7 and Oct. 20.
Mayor
Incumbent Mayor Larry Agran is seeking re-election to a two-year term and faces challenger Maksim V. Egorov, a software engineer and business owner. Current candidate listings identify Egorov as having no political party preference. Irvine municipal elections are nonpartisan.
Maksim V. Egorov. In the candidate statement provided to the Irvine Times, Egorov says his decision to run was inspired by protecting Irvine’s open space, serving residents and planning responsibly for the future. He describes his professional background as a software engineer focused on solving problems, improving quality and delivering results. He also says he serves on his neighborhood homeowners association board and has volunteered on the School Site Council and English Learner Advisory Committee at his children’s Irvine school.
Egorov’s stated priorities include fiscal responsibility, stronger budget oversight, long-term budget stability, open-space protection, public safety, innovation and mobility improvements. He also says residents should have an opportunity to vote on the future of Irvine’s open space. His candidate statement concludes: “I will lead with integrity and be a Mayor for all of Irvine.”
Larry Agran. Agran is the incumbent mayor and is seeking another term. This guide treats the mayoral contest the same way as the council races: candidate positions and priorities should be attributed to campaign materials, public records or direct candidate responses rather than inferred from party affiliation.
District 1
District 1 features incumbent Councilmember Melinda Liu, former Irvine Mayor Sukhee Kang and John Park.
Melinda Liu. Liu was elected to the council in 2024. Her campaign highlights public safety and infrastructure, economic opportunity and fiscal responsibility, neighborhood and family issues, and transparent government. Her campaign also points to pedestrian-safety initiatives and efforts to increase community participation at City Hall. In describing her approach, Liu says she believes Irvine succeeds when local leadership is “transparent, inclusive, and accountable.”
Sukhee Kang. Kang previously served on the Irvine City Council and as mayor. His campaign focuses on open-space protection, community amenities and environmental improvements in District 1. His published plans include a new library and community center and a proposal to plant tens of thousands of trees. Kang says he is running to provide “steady, proven leadership focused on results, accountability, and Irvine’s future.”
John Park. Park’s campaign emphasizes city spending, responsiveness to residents and what he calls commonsense leadership. Park has received support from Republican organizations, including the Republican Party of Orange County. On his campaign website, Park summarizes his governing philosophy this way: “Listen to the people you serve, spend their tax dollars wisely, and never forget why you ran in the first place.”
District 5
The District 5 ballot includes incumbent Betty Martinez Franco, former Councilmember Anthony Kuo, Steven Alves, Byron Salvatierra and Julie Glossbrenner.
Betty Martinez Franco. Martinez Franco won the District 5 seat in a 2025 special election. Her campaign emphasizes affordability, representation and the cost of living. Her campaign website describes her as focused on pushing back against Irvine’s rising cost of living. Public endorsement listings show support from Democratic organizations, including the Democratic Party of Orange County, as well as labor and advocacy groups.
Anthony Kuo. Kuo previously served on the Irvine City Council and has also served on the city’s Finance Commission. His campaign materials emphasize public safety, affordability and fiscal responsibility, including scrutiny of city spending.
Steven Alves. Alves, a longtime Irvine resident who previously served as chief of staff to Vice Mayor James Mai, is campaigning on public safety, fiscal restraint, infrastructure and neighborhood issues. His campaign says he wants to bring “disciplined leadership and fiscal restraint” to the council. His published endorsements include the Republican Party of Orange County, the Lincoln Club of Orange County and Greater Irvine Republicans.
Byron Salvatierra. Salvatierra is an Iraq War Army veteran and cybersecurity professional who has also worked as a public safety assistant for the Irvine Police Department and serves as a reserve firefighter with the Orange County Fire Authority. His campaign lists community connection, safety, government accountability, affordability and sustainability among his priorities. Explaining his candidacy, Salvatierra says he believes stronger communities are built by residents “banding together with our individual abilities.”
Julie Glossbrenner. Glossbrenner is listed as a District 5 candidate and is identified in current candidate listings as a housing specialist. Available election listings identify her as having no political party preference. This guide avoids attributing additional policy positions to her without a campaign statement or other primary-source material supporting them.
District 6
District 6 features Councilmember Kathleen Treseder and Scotty Hong.
Kathleen Treseder. Treseder, a UC Irvine professor who has served on the council at large since 2022, has been closely associated with environmental and sustainability issues during her time in city government. Public endorsement information shows support from the Democratic Party of Orange County. This guide does not characterize that endorsement as a substitute for her positions on Irvine-specific issues.
Scotty Hong. Hong has worked as a policy adviser to Mayor Larry Agran and has served on Irvine’s Sustainability Commission. His campaign highlights public safety, transportation, sidewalk completion, neighborhood services and development. Hong says he is seeking to bring “disciplined, neighborhood-first leadership to City Hall.” His District 6 plan also focuses on the Jamboree corridor, Irvine CONNECT and public-safety presence.
Key issue: Irvine’s finances and the city budget
City finances are likely to remain a major issue during the campaign. Irvine’s adopted 2025-27 biennial budget originally projected General Fund revenues and transfers of about $298.1 million for fiscal year 2025-26 and about $311.9 million for 2026-27. That represents an increase of roughly $13.8 million, or about 4.6%, between the two fiscal years. The same adopted plan projected General Fund expenditures and transfers of about $298.0 million in 2025-26 and $311.8 million in 2026-27.
The financial picture is still developing. In June, the city considered mid-cycle budget adjustments, including roughly $6.2 million in additional 2025-26 General Fund expenditures paired with approximately $6.3 million in revenues. The city has also scheduled a Sept. 22 special City Council meeting specifically on the General Fund structural deficit, followed by an Oct. 14 community budget workshop.
That makes the budget a concrete issue for voters to examine across all three council races: how candidates would balance service levels, public safety, infrastructure, development-related needs and long-term fiscal stability. Rather than assuming what each candidate would cut, preserve or expand, the Irvine Times can ask every candidate the same budget questions and publish their answers side by side.
