Larry Agran, Betty Martinez Franco and Kathleen Treseder lead in their races for second terms as Irvine‘s mayor and District 5 and 6 councilmembers. But the bid for the city’s northernmost District 1 has shaped up to be a close one, with incumbent Melinda Liu pushing ahead with 142 votes as of Friday’s update on vote counting.
Measure D has also been met with support — if ultimately passed, the measure would overhaul the city’s by-district election system that voters approved in 2024 to instead pioneer the county’s first ranked-choice system.
Agran has sustained since the close of polls Tuesday a lead over challenger Max Egorov, a software engineer, for the at-large mayoral seat, which represents Irvine’s more than 300,000 residents.
Agran has held the seat since 2024 and previously served on the Irvine City Council on and off for the better part of five decades. Egorov, who emigrated from Russia, said he got his start in local politics by attending City Council meetings and joining local community groups to advocate for open space around Irvine.
Election results: See results for this race and others
“The early results were very encouraging for me,” Agran said of early returns Tuesday night. He currently leads with more than 69% of the votes, or 46,527 to Egorov’s 20,203.
“I think, for the most part, Irvine voters have been satisfied with the leadership of the city, over the course of the two years, to the extent that this was the referendum I and councilmembers have been providing on urban issues here in Irvine,” he said. “I think they feel pretty good.”
Challenger Egorov was upbeat this week despite trailing, “I think it still turned out very well for me.”
“I started this campaign just to bring more attention to issues in the city,” Egorov said, naming “budget issues,” “more taxes” and “the open space discussion at Oak Creek.”
Egorov is part of a coalition of Irvine community members opposed to a housing proposal that would redevelop the Oak Creek Golf Course, saying the plan flouts a 1988 voter-initiative that dedicated the land as “open space” to be preserved. The proposal by the Irvine Company is currently undergoing an environmental impact report.
Egorov said he is interested in running for the mayoral seat again — in 2028.
Irvine’s mayor serves two-year terms while the six councilmembers serve four-year terms.
District 1 represents northernmost Irvine and includes several major master-planned communities, such as Northpark and Orchard Hills and The Market Place shopping destination.
Incumbent Liu is leading with 4,653 votes against City Finance Commissioner and business owner John Park, who has 4,511 votes, in a tight race that saw Liu trailing for a period since the close of polls.
Former mayor and councilmember Sukhee Kang rounds out the three-person race.
In District 5, incumbent Martinez Franco is fending off challenges from four.
Steven Alves, former chief of staff to Councilmember James Mai, Julie Glossbrenner, a housing specialist and long-time Irvine resident, Anthony Kuo, an Irvine commissioner who was previously a councilmember, and Byron Salvatierra, a U.S. Army veteran and security transformation manager, were all bidding for a term representing the city’s civic hub that includes City Hall, University Park Library and several neighborhoods such as Westpark and Woodbridge.
Martinez has captured 4,303 votes so far. Kuo trails with 3,231 votes.
District 6 incumbent Treseder was challenged by Scotty Hong, one of the city’s sustainability commissioners and chief policy advisor to Mayor Agran.
“I’m so happy,” Treseder said of the early results. She leads the race with more than 58% of the vote, or 4,190 votes to Hong’s 3,034.
“I really appreciated the support of the folks in my neighborhood and also the UCI students, they’ve been super involved and supportive,” she said, adding she had spent “a lot of time on campus and talking to students. They really liked the climate change work that I’m doing. I think a lot of the young folks are really concerned about the environment.”
The district draws in Irvine’s westernmost neighborhoods, anchored around UC Irvine and several nearby residential and commercial areas, such as the University Hills and the Irvine Business Complex.
Treseder spearheaded a push to put the city’s Measure D on the ballot, which if approved by voters, would have voters rank candidates for an office in order of preference, with the winning candidate receiving at least half of the votes.
The measure is passing with more than 52% of the vote.
The OC Registrar of Voters will update results most days at 5 p.m., until the counting is complete.