WHY A RECALL FOR DISTRICT 1?
A recall is not a step we take lightly. It is a significant democratic tool reserved for extraordinary circumstances.
Like many engaged residents, we first pursued the traditional avenues of civic participation. We attended City Council meetings, offered public comments, wrote letters and emails to our elected officials, met with city leaders, organized our neighbors, and asked questions in good faith. Too often, our concerns about budget deficits, misallocated funds, and justification for decisions made were dismissed by those we aim to recall.
As many residents felt their concerns were being dismissed, it became clear to many of us that simply continuing to participate through the usual channels was unlikely to bring about meaningful change.
Some have asked why we are pursuing a recall now instead of waiting for the next election. The answer is straightforward: Mayor Fred Jung’s actions have damaged public trust and our city’s finances, and he still has nearly two years remaining in his term. The continued damage to our city’s finances and the deterioration of our infrastructure means we cannot wait.
Jung has served as mayor four times out of the six years he has been on council. In those six years, our budget deficit has grown, our services have shrunk, and trust from the public remains dismally low. We believe Fullerton deserves better, and that residents have both the right and the responsibility to act when their city is headed in the wrong direction.
The city deficit kept growing — and Mayor Jung kept downplaying it, even falsely claiming at one point that he balanced the budget.
Our city is in a dire financial situation that has grown under Mayor Jung’s watch and worsened as he has continued to consolidate power. In March 2022, Mayor Jung said in his State of the City address that Fullerton’s revenue was set to grow by 2025. Instead, 14 months later, the City projected a $3 million deficit by 2027. Then by 2025, that estimate had more than tripled to over $9 million.
By June 2026, an “accounting error” ballooned the projected shortfall to 13.7 million — forcing the City into drastic cuts to city services such as fire, police, parks and libraries, as well as the depletion of our reserves to a level below what policy minimums allow.
When Fred Jung ran for County Supervisor 2026, his ballot statement misleadingly claimed that he had “turned around a $9 million deficit into a balanced budget”, a claim that he was forced to retract following a lawsuit.
Supporters of Jung get sweetheart deals for their businesses, while small business owners get squeezed.
Fred Jung and Jamie Valencia approved a lease of city-owned land near the Fullerton train station to Mayor Jung’s major donor Tony Bushala. The terms of the lease include rental rates at a discount of up to 75%, and a renewal option to extend these same terms through 2060 — terms critics say are without precedent for a municipal lease.
Around the same time, the City raised outdoor dining fees to exorbitant levels for already struggling small restaurants, even as the train station patio operated by the donor is rent-free under the new lease. Mayor Jung has appointed the very same donor to a committee tasked with advising on the city’s finances.
Every dollar handed to a supporter through a steeply discounted lease of public land or a land giveaway is a dollar that isn't going toward paving our streets or helping our small businesses survive.
Fullerton has a Fair Rotation policy meant to ensure the mayorship rotates fairly among council districts, so no single member holds outsized power indefinitely. It hasn't stopped Fred Jung.
At the December 16, 2025 council meeting, a crowd of residents booed as Jung, Dunlap, and Valencia voted Jung in as mayor for the fourth time — again passing over Ahmad Zahra, the longest-serving member of the council, and Shana Charles, who by Fullerton’s own policies should have been next in line. The same voting bloc that has steered budget, leasing, and fee decisions kept the gavel exactly where it already was.
This is what consolidation of power looks like; the same three votes, meeting after meeting, keeping decision-making in the same hands while bypassing the city's own conventions for sharing it.
A judge ruled that Jung’s claims about balancing the budget, building parks, and being a business owner were false and misleading
Jung's own campaign statements haven't held up to scrutiny. In March 2026, a lawsuit challenged Jung's ballot designation and several claims in his candidate statement for County Supervisor.
The suit pointed out that Jung's ballot statement listed him as "Fullerton Mayor / Businessowner" — despite state records showing that he does not own a business. It also challenged his claims that he "built 9 new parks" and "turned around a $9 million deficit into a balanced budget."
On March 26, 2026, a judge ordered Jung to change his ballot designation to "businessman" and to strike both the parks claim and the deficit claim from his official statement to voters. A sitting mayor's own description of his record didn't survive a judge's review.
No plans for our roads. For helping our small businesses. Or for fixing our budget deficit.