Where candidates work

Voters might notice that Costa Mesa Mayor Mayor Allan Mansoor lists his occupation as “Mayor/Deputy Sheriff” on the sample ballot mailed to their homes ahead of the June 8 GOP primary.

In fact, the mayor quit the Orange County Sheriff’s Department in December as a sheriff’s deputy at the county’s Central Men’s Jail in Santa Ana.

Election rules allow candidates to list the job they held within the last 12 months, said Neal Kelley, Orange County Registrar of Voters.

“I let the Registrar of Voters know everything about my employment history and they told me what the rules are, and I’m in compliance,” Mansoor said.

Mansoor quit his job after a 16-year career with the department, which included work as a patrolman, to focus on the race for the 68th state Assembly seat, which will be vacated by Assemblyman Van Tran (R-Westminster) because of term limits.

Candidates are not permitted to use the word “former” next to their occupation, Kelley said.

Mansoor, 45, did not retire and does not collect a pension at this time, he said.

“I planned and prepared, and I get paid a little bit to be on the council,” Mansoor said.

Mansoor receives a monthly check of $954 for his position as a council member, said City Clerk Julie Folcik.

Mansoor is one of four candidates running for Tran’s seat.

Long Pham, Mansoor’s Republican opponent in the primary, lists his position as a “Trustee/Engineer.”

A phone message left with Pham wasn’t immediately returned Tuesday afternoon.

Phu Nguyen, one of two Democratic candidates, lists his position as an “Owner/Entrepreneur.” Nguyen said he is vice president of Saigon Central Coast, a money transfer company in Westminster.

Joe Dovinh, the other Democrat, lists his occupation as a “Media Communication Businessman.” Dovinh said he is a licensed general contractor who owns a construction company, and that he hosts a local Vietnamese-American TV show and works as a court interpreter.