Former congresswoman Loretta Sanchez runs for Orange County supervisor

Former Democratic congresswoman Loretta Sanchez is running for Orange County Board of Supervisors seat.

She is the most prominent of the candidates who say they’ve entered the race to replace 3rd District Supervisor Todd Spitzer, who was elected to be the county’s new district attorney.

Joining her in the March special election will be former Anaheim councilwoman Kris Murray, a Republican, and Democrat Andy Thorburn, who ran unsuccessfully for Congress in the June primary. Thorburn, a deep-pocketed Villa Park businessman, is committing $1 million of his own money to his board campaign.

The third district stretches from Yorba Linda and parts of Anaheim into Orange, Villa Park, Irvine, Tustin and the Cleveland National Forest. Spitzer, a Republican, has represented the seat for six years, serving on an all-GOP board during that time.

Republicans still have a 4 percentage point voter registration advantage in the district. But that’s down from the 14-point GOP lead when Spitzer took office, and results from the recent midterm suggest an appetite for change in the once solidly conservative region. In addition to sweeping Republicans from all congressional seats in the county, Democrats also won their first Orange County board race in 14 years.