Fred Jung
Fred Jung is the current Mayor of Fullerton, representing District 1 since 2020. He is also a candidate for Orange County Supervisor in District 4. Jung is Fullerton’s first Korean-American Councilmember and has been selected as mayor four times.
early life
Born in Seoul, South Korea, Jung immigrated to the United States at age 5. He briefly attended Webb Boarding School in Claremont before graduating from Sunny Hills High School. Before entering politics, Jung worked as a journalist and editor for several jazz publications and later founded a youth football league in Fullerton.
city council
2020
2020 campaign
In 2020, Jung announced his candidacy for the Fullerton City Council. He received endorsements from the Democratic Party of Orange County, Assemblywoman Sharon Quirk-Silva, and Councilmember Ahmad Zahra. Jung narrowly won the election, defeating opponent Andrew Cho by roughly 300 votes.
mayor rotation controversy
Jung was sworn in on December 1, 2020, by Assemblywoman Quirk-Silva. One of the first items of business was the annual appointment of mayor. In Fullerton, the mayor is chosen by a majority vote of the Council, traditionally following a rotation where each member first serves as Mayor Pro Tem before becoming mayor the following year.
In 2020, it was Councilmember Ahmad Zahra’s turn to serve as Mayor Pro Tem. Jung broke with his Democratic base by voting instead for newly elected Republican Nick Dunlap to serve as Mayor Pro Tem, sparking backlash and criticism in local media, including The Orange Juice Blog and The Fullerton Observer.
Early Signs of a Voting Bloc
It became apparent early on that Jung, Dunlap, and Whitaker would be a common voting bloc, often being on the same side of significant 3-2 votes. On December 15, 2020, the three City Councilmembers voted to delay a vote on commercial cannabis fees, a necessary step in recovering costs for the newly legalized industry. That same meeting, they voted as a bloc to deny a fiscal sustainability analysis to strengthen fiscal conditions and financial practices, and also voted to appoint newly elected Fred Jung to the board of the Orange County Power Authority. Councilmembers Zahra and Silva opposed all of these decisions.
2021
Legal Cannabis Rolled Back
On February 16, 2021, Jung voted along with Dunlap and Whitaker to roll back the ordinance that made cannabis sales legal. Jung stated that this was a “flawed ordinance” that he could not support. Councilmembers Zahra and Silva argued that rolling this back would not meaningfully reduce cannabis sales, but rather create an unregulated and less safe market. They also argued for the potential revenue the city would receive.
Political donor Tony Bushala opposed the ordinance due to the size of the residential buffer. According to testimony from former Santa Ana mayor Miguel Pulido, Bushala has financial stake in the cannabis industry. According to city emails, Bushala was also represented by a cannabis lobbyist at this time named Ken Spiker.
Park Plans Rejected
On April 6, 2021, Jung voted along with Dunlap and Whitaker to not pursue a Parks Master Plan. The City’s plan for the development and maintenance of parks was outdated, not having been updated since 1978. These plans are significant as they perform a detailed analysis of current conditions of parks and needs, while also serving as a guiding document for staff within the parks department in what proposals they bring to City Council.
Jung opposed the Parks Master Plan, stating that this does not require a consultant and that the current Parks and Recreation staff are capable of formulating this plan on their own. Parks and Recreation staff stated that they lack the capacity to do this and that recent turnover means necessary areas of expertise no longer exist within the city. As of 2026, the city of Fullerton has not updated their Parks Master Plan.
Independent Redistricting Rejected
Every ten years, California cities with districts must redraw those districts following the federal census. City staff presented three options for conducting this redistricting process: advisory commission, independent commission, and hybrid commission. The advisory commission gives the City Council full authority over which district map will be chosen. The independent commission uses a third-party to evaluate and choose the final map. A hybrid commission combines the two, allowing the City Council to choose between two maps recommended by an independent commission.
Councilmember Zahra, and later Silva, supported an independent commission, expressing concerns over political partisanship clouding the judgment of City Council. Jung joined Whitaker and Dunlap in rejecting this option, instead opting for an advisory commission. Their recommendations would come back to City Council in 2022, though these recommendations would be purely suggestive.
City Manager Fired
In April 2021, City Council voted 3-2 to fire City Manager Ken Domer without cause. The vote occurred in closed session so the public isn’t privy to the discussion that led to his firing. Fullerton is a Council-Manager form of government, meaning the City Council acts as the legislative body and the City Manager is the executive tasked with implementing their policies. The abrupt firing of Domer led to mass staff exodus and dysfunction, resulting in multiple lawsuits and open cases against the city. Fullerton’s housing element was decertified, exposing them to Builder’s Remedy projects. CalPERS also opened a case against the city due to alleged unlawful hiring practices following Domer’s firing.
Jung Made Mayor. Rotation Ignored
On December 7, 2021, City Council chose the next Mayor and Mayor Pro Tem. Policy stated that the longest tenured Councilmember to not serve as Mayor Pro Tem would be appointed to that position, while the current Mayor Pro Tem would be appointed to Mayor. At this time, this would suggest Zahra would become Mayor Pro Tem and Whitaker would become Mayor. That was not how it played out.
Jung was appointed Mayor for the first time, while Whitaker was appointed Mayor Pro Tem in two narrow votes.
2022
Silva Drawn Out Of His District
Following multiple public hearings, the Fullerton City Council was tasked with choosing a new district map. The decision ultimately came down to two choices: map 112 and map 114.
Map 112 was supported by Councilmembers Zahra and Silva. This map strongly met one of the core criteria in this process: total deviation. Total deviation is a percentage to determine how evenly populated the districts are; the higher the percentage, the more skewed population totals are by district. This matters because a district with a lower population means that those voters have more influence than a voter in a district with a larger population. This is a priority in choosing districts under state law.
Map 114 was supported by Councilmembers Jung, Dunlap, and Whitaker. They argued this map was more compact and used more sensible boundaries. However, this map was at a total deviation of 9.38%, right below the legal threshold of 10%. For comparison, map 112 was at 3.06%; far more balanced. In addition to being less balanced, it also would draw Councilmember Silva out of his own district.
Jung, Dunlap, and Whitaker voted to approve map 114, removing a city councilmember from his district. Councilmember Zahra reminded the public of his earlier statements in support of an independent redistricting commission.
City Cuts 2.5% Across the Board
On March 15 2022, Jung voted with Whitaker and Dunlap to cut the budget by 2.5% to achieve a 17% reserve level. Here is a breakdown of what was cut from the staff report:
Breakdown of the 2.5% cuts resulting in a reduction of ~$2.7 million in city expenditures
Silva and Zahra opposed these cuts, preferring 1.5% cuts.
These cuts reduced full time staff employees from 670 to 625. By 2025-26, the City would employ 670 full time employees, the same as before the cuts
Jung Appointed Mayor Again
At the end of 2022, Councilmember Silva left office after being drawn out his district. Shana Charles took his place, representing District 3. On her first day in office, Councilmember Charles proposed sticking to the original rotation policy; nominating Whitaker for Mayor (since he was currently serving as Mayor Pro Tem) and Zahra for Mayor Pro Tem (since he has served the longest without holding the role). Instead, Whitaker, Jung, and Dunlap nominated Jung for Mayor and Whitaker for Mayor Pro Tem.
2023
Later Meeting Time Rejected
On March 21, Zahra and Charles supported changing the City Council meeting time from 5:30 to 6, allowing more participation from the public. Jung joined Whitaker and Dunlap in rejecting this proposed change.
Grant For Trail Sent Back To State
On August 15, City Council discussed a potential trail in an underserved part of the city. The trail would be funded through a state grant that the City Council had voted unanimously to apply for. Wealthy landlord and political donor, Tony Bushala, opposed the trail which would run right behind his office. Jung moved, seconded by Dunlap, to return the grant to the state and discuss other uses for it. Zahra and Charles opposed.
Dunlap Made Mayor, Jung Mayor Pro Tem
On December 5, many residents spoke out requesting city council to appoint Zahra to the mayorship, given he served the longest without going so. This included former Councilmember Jan Flory, and prominent community members Tim Johnson and Gretchen Cox. The Council Majority voted to appoint Dunlap as Mayor and Jung as Mayor Pro Tem, with Zahra and Charles opposed to both.
walk on wilshire
“Walk on Wilshire” began during the COVID-19 pandemic as a temporary pedestrian plaza to support outdoor dining. Strong community support kept it in place well after restrictions ended.
When plans emerged to reopen the street, a grassroots coalition, Save Walk on Wilshire, organized residents and businesses in defense of the plaza. The group submitted over 2,000 signatures and 70 letters of support to City Hall.
Political donor Tony Bushala, who owns property at 124 W. Wilshire Ave, opposed the closure and threatened to sue the city if the street was not reopened.
At the October 15, 2024 meeting, Jung said he opposed the program because he wanted a “full street closure.” When Councilmember Charles asked if Jung would support the project if staff returned with that option, Jung said yes. However, when the revised plan came back in January 2025 with a full closure, Jung and Councilmember Valencia voted no, resulting in a 2-2 tie that ended the pedestrian zone.
