{"id":496333,"date":"2026-10-14T23:52:08","date_gmt":"2026-10-14T23:52:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/496333\/"},"modified":"2026-10-14T23:52:08","modified_gmt":"2026-10-14T23:52:08","slug":"derek-tran-and-chuong-vo-look-to-their-families-when-it-comes-to-immigration-policy-in-the-race-for-californias-45th-congressional-district","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/496333\/","title":{"rendered":"Derek Tran and Chuong Vo look to their families when it comes to immigration policy in the race for California\u2019s 45th Congressional District"},"content":{"rendered":"

When it comes to Congress\u2019 role in developing the country\u2019s immigration policy over the next few years, Rep. Derek Tran<\/a> and former Cerritos Mayor Chuong Vo<\/a>, the candidates for California\u2019s 45th Congressional District<\/a>, turn to their own families.<\/p>\n

SCNG\u2019s 2026 Voter Guide<\/p>\n

The Southern California News Group asked the candidates vying to represent you several questions in order to help you get to know them better. This story is based on their responses. You can find the full questionnaires from these and other candidates on your ballot \u2014 as well as helpful tips on how to vote, explainers on the multitude of propositions and more \u2014 on our Voter Guide here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Tran, who is finishing up his first term in Congress, where he represents a district that includes Orange County\u2019s Little Saigon<\/a>, home to the largest Vietnamese population outside of that country<\/a>, has often talked about being the son of refugees from Vietnam<\/a>. His father,\u00a0like many others<\/a>, fled Vietnam by boat after the fall of Saigon, but the boat capsized, killing his wife and children. His father would remarry, and the two would successfully leave Vietnam and settle in the U.S. Tran was born and raised in Los Angeles County, according to his House bio<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Vo, a former police officer for nearly three decades, came to the U.S. from Vietnam as a refugee with his parents<\/a>.\u00a0On his campaign website<\/a>, Vo noted that \u201clike so many immigrant families, I\u2019m grateful to a country that gave my family a chance, and I want to keep that promise alive for the next generation.\u201d<\/p>\n

Both candidates, when asked in a Southern California News Group questionnaire what immigration policy in the U.S. should look like in five years, pointed to their families\u2019 experiences as refugees.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am a product of the American dream: My parents immigrated to this country to escape persecution and to get a chance at another life, a better one. And this country delivered for them. I believe that immigrants will always be a part of what makes this country great and should always be a part of our story,\u201d said Tran, who resides in Orange.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut our immigration system is badly in need of reform. We must provide a clear path to legal status for individuals who play by the rules and contribute to our communities. At the same time, we must hold ICE accountable to ensure immigration enforcement does not target and separate law-abiding families and is conducted humanely and strictly within the bounds of the law,\u201d Tran added.<\/p>\n

Vo, meanwhile, stressed his belief that a secure border is paramount.<\/p>\n

Still, Vo said, \u201csecurity has to be paired with a legal immigration system that actually works: shorter backlogs, real employer verification, and a process that rewards people who follow the rules instead of punishing them for waiting in line.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThis issue is very personal to me. My family came here as refugees, and they did it legally after years of waiting in line. They built a life because they followed the rules, and this country kept its word,\u201d Vo said.<\/p>\n

\u201cCompassion and the rule of law are not contradictory,\u201d he continued. \u201cFive years from now, I want an immigration system my parents would agree is fair. That means it must be more orderly, enforced, and fair to the people going through the process the right way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Vo, a Republican, does not support cuts to Medicare, the federal program for older adults.<\/p>\n

Medicaid, though, should \u201cstay a safety net for kids, people with disabilities and Americans who truly need it,\u201d Vo said of the other federal program that provides healthcare to lower-income people regardless of age.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe also need to do a far better job rooting out fraud, which there is clearly a lot of,\u201d Vo said. \u201cThe goal shouldn\u2019t be spending more or less, success should be measured by better outcomes for Americans and transparency around every tax dollar we spend.\u201d<\/p>\n

On the other side, Tran, the Democratic incumbent, wants to expand access to affordable healthcare and restore cuts made to Medicaid services in President Donald Trump\u2019s massive tax and spending bill passed last year<\/a>. He touted his backing of a bill<\/a> that he said would restore Medicaid funding and extend tax credits that helped reduce the cost of health insurance for those enrolled in the Affordable Care Act that expired at the beginning of this year<\/a> when lawmakers could not reach a deal to extend them. (That bill has not made it through a committee, and does not have any Republican backing in the GOP-controlled House.)<\/p>\n

\u201cFederal funding is necessary to ensure that these services reach the people who need them,\u201d Tran said. \u201cBecause of Republican cuts, vital community services are suffering. I\u2019m focused on legislation that works to reverse the drastic cuts to affordable healthcare enacted in H.R.1 and bring down the cost of care wherever possible.\u201d<\/p>\n

The 45th Congressional District favors Democrats, particularly after voters passed the mid-cycle redistricting that changed the boundary lines for House seats<\/a> last year. But Tran, then a political newcomer, won the seat in 2024 by defeating Republican incumbent Michelle Steel<\/a>, who is now an ambassador to South Korea<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The 45th Congressional District includes Cerritos in L.A. County, as well as Buena Park, Cypress, Fountain Valley, Garden Grove and Westminster in Orange County. The nonpartisan Cook Political Report considers the race to be<\/a> \u201clikely Democrat,\u201d just one step away from the stronger ranking of \u201csolid Democrat.\u201d<\/p>\n

Democrats account for 38.72% (174,874 people) of registered voters in the district, according to the latest statistics from the California secretary of state\u2019s office. Republicans, meanwhile, account for 30.2% (136,404), and no party preference 25.22% (113,906).<\/p>\n

In comparison, at this point in the 2024 election \u2014 albeit, remember that the congressional district\u2019s boundary lines were a bit different then \u2014 Democrats accounted for 37.3% (166,293) of registered voters, Republicans for 33.02% (147,230) and no party preference 24% (106,979).<\/p>\n

For more about these candidates\u2019 \u2014 and others\u2019 \u2014 views on data centers, immigration, surveillance technology and more, view their questionnaires on our voter guide<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Ballots have already been sent to every registered voter in California, and voting is underway. Election Day is Nov. 3.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"When it comes to Congress\u2019 role in developing the country\u2019s immigration policy over the next few years, Rep.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":496334,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[135024,1400,163,165,164,7,8,400,204,137,100,611,13,136],"class_list":["post-496333","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-anaheim","tag-2026-california-congressional-elections","tag-2026-elections","tag-anaheim","tag-anaheim-headlines","tag-anaheim-news","tag-california","tag-california-news","tag-california-politics","tag-election","tag-los-angeles-county","tag-news","tag-orange-county","tag-politics","tag-top-stories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/496333","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=496333"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/496333\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/496334"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=496333"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=496333"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=496333"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}