Laguna caps donations at $500. This new committee started with $100,000.
Courtesy of The Weiss Report
For more than a year we have argued that Laguna Beach elections are not a level playing field. Incumbents run with name recognition, the free publicity that comes with the seat, and a donor network built over years in office. I have said that incumbents typically outraise newcomers at least two to one, and that the money gap is one of the strongest reasons we need term limits.
We were wrong about the size of the gap. It is much bigger than that.
The Gap Was Already Four to One
The candidates’ own Form 460 campaign finance reports for July 1 through September 19 show:
• The three incumbents, Mark Orgill, Sue Kempf and Alex Rounaghi, raised $132,929.
• The six challengers raised about $33,000 combined, not counting money candidates lent their own campaigns.
• Alex Rounaghi alone raised $65,242, nearly twice what all six challengers raised together.
That is a four-to-one advantage. And it is the money we can see, from donors limited to $500 per candidate under the City’s contribution limit.
$100,000 From a Single Company
On October 1, a new committee filed its first contribution report with the City Clerk. Its full name says it all: the Laguna Beach Good Leadership Committee Supporting Kempf, Rounaghi and Orgill for City Council 2026, Sponsored by Regency Properties LP and Affiliated Entities (FPPC ID 1497439).
Its Form 497 shows a single contribution of $100,000, received September 30 from Regency Properties L.P., and affiliated entities, of 1555 S. Coast Highway in Laguna Beach. One company sponsors the committee, and one company funded it.
The committee’s Form 497, received by the City Clerk on October 1, 2026, showing the $100,000 contribution from Regency Properties, L.P. Source: City of Laguna Beach campaign disclosure records.
That single contribution is more than three times what the six challengers have raised from all their supporters combined. It is the equivalent of 200 maximum contributions to a candidate, written in one check.
As of this writing, the committee has not reported spending any of it. But ballots are already in voters’ hands, and $100,000 buys a lot of mailers and ads in a town of 19,000 voters. When they arrive, check who paid for them.
How is this possible when the City limits contributions to $500? Because the limit applies to candidates’ own campaigns. Under state law and the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision, an independent committee can raise and spend unlimited amounts, as long as it does not coordinate with the candidates it supports. The law requires independence, and I am not alleging that anyone has broken it. But for voters the effect is the same: one large donor can drown out hundreds of residents giving $100 or $250 at a time.
Same Donors, Two Campaigns
The filings also show how tightly the incumbents’ support is connected to the campaign against term limits. Several of the incumbents’ donors who gave to all three of them also gave to Citizens for Laguna’s Future, the committee formed to defeat Measure E. Among them are Joe Hanauer, Patrick Quilter, Christopher Quilter and Cody Engle. Not one sitting councilmember supports term limits. At the Village Laguna forum, all six challengers said yes to term limits and the incumbents said no.
So, the same network that is funding the incumbents is also funding the effort to make sure incumbents never have to step aside. And now a committee funded by a single company has joined them with six figures.
“Just Vote Them Out” Meets a War Chest People who oppose term limits say, “If you don’t like them, just vote them out.” That only works on a level field. When incumbents outraise challengers four to one and a single company adds $100,000 more, a newcomer is not running against an incumbent. They are running against a war chest. Read James Danziger’s article I posted today on Substack. https://georgeweiss.substack.com/p/why-i-will-vote-yes-on-term-limits
Measure E does not ban anyone from serving. It allows two consecutive four-year terms, then a two-year break, after which a former councilmember can run again. Eight years is enough to learn the job and finish projects. The break creates open seats where residents can compete on ideas instead of money. Twenty-eight of Orange County’s 34 cities already have term limits.
Follow the Money Before You Vote
Money only works if voters don’t know where it comes from. The best defense we have is sunlight.
• Look at the filings yourself. Campaign reports for all candidates and committees are public on the City Clerk’s campaign disclosure portal.
• When a glossy mailer arrives, check the “paid for by” line. Ask who is behind that committee and what they want from City Hall.
• Forward this to every Laguna Beach voter you know. Post it, share it, talk about it.
• Vote yes on Measure E and no to candidates that do not support it.
• Ballots are already arriving. Many of our neighbors will vote this week. Please make sure they know what is going on before they do.
*Sources: FPPC Form 460 campaign statements, July 1–September 19, 2026, for Mark Orgill, Sue Kempf, Alex Rounaghi, Nick Aronoff, Ashley Cintas, Joy Berry and Karen Martin; Form 460 for Citizens for Laguna’s Future (through Sept. 19, 2026); Laguna Beach Good Leadership Committee (FPPC ID 1497439), Form 497 contribution report filed Oct. 1, 2026; Village Laguna candidate forum, Aug. 31, 2026.