Jamie Valencia
Early life and education
Jamie Valencia grew up in Mammoth, California. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Nursing and has been a registered nurse for about 18 years. Valencia was a Division I collegiate athlete and became a nationally‑ranked downhill skier.
Nursing career and community service
Before entering local politics, Valencia built a career in health care. She has worked in adult and pediatric critical‑care and trauma settings, including the Emergency/Trauma Department and as a Critical‑Care Transport Flight Nurse. At the time she ran for office, she was working as a pediatric critical‑care/trauma nurse and a school nurse in Fullerton.
Valencia served as the Executive Vice President of the Linda Vista Elementary PTA in Orange during the 2024‑25 school year. She is an active volunteer in local youth sports.
2024 city council campaign
In 2024 Valencia ran for the District 4 seat on the Fullerton City Council. Valencia won the November 2024 election and began her four‑year term on December 13, 2024. She became the youngest member of the council at age 41
Public Comment Dispute
On May 6th, 2026, Valencia described a resident’s public comment as racist/hate speech on Instagram. The transcript of the comment is below.
The transcript of the public comment being referenced:
Mayor Jung, I know you are not a stupid man. Unethical and self serving, absolutely, but not stupid. So I am surprised to see you repeating behaviours that backfire and expose your habit of overstepping and abusing your official authority. Three examples come to mind. One, in August of 2023, you declared a one acre site adjacent to Duck Pond Park to view the future site of a Korean garden. Unfortunately, the celebrated news soon became an embarrassment. Then, City Manager Eric Levitt was forced to explain to the Korean federation that you had no authority to make such a statement, much less implement such a plan. Two, again, in 2023, several of your committee appoint, appointees had included the image of the city seal on their personal business cards, implying that those businesses were somehow endorsed or had a special relationship with the city.This is a violation of county and state law, and while it was corrected and the images removed, you felt the need to publicly place blame elsewhere.You were quoted in a local Korean newspaper as stating, quote, I perceive it as stemming from a mix of racism by certain factions and a misunderstanding of Korean American customs, end quote. no sir, it was not racism, simply ignorance, willful or otherwise of the rules and regulations of the city. Sowing mistrust and division does not strengthen our community. Three, at a recent meeting of the Korean American Chamber of Commerce here in Fullerton, you proclaimed April the 27th of each year as Kim Bu Khan Philanthropy Day.In checking with the City Clerk, I was informed that this subject was never agendaised and therefore never approved by the city council. Once again, you have presumed to have authority to act on the behalf of the city, which you do not have.It is now incumbent on the city manager to contact the Korean American Chamber and those who believe that this honor was genuine, that there is no such official proclamation and no day has been set aside to honor this philanthropy.Had you gone through the proper procedures and taken it to the council, we may have had a better outcome. Mr. Jung, you continue to make promises you cannot keep. Thank you, simply
