Dixon faces Foley for Orange County supervisor District 5 seat

Diane Dixon of Newport Beach faces Katrina Foley of Costa Mesa in the nonpartisan Nov. 3 general election for Orange County Board of Supervisors District 5. Dixon is a registered Republican and Foley is a registered Democrat, according to the Daily Pilot.

Dixon led the June 2 primary with 48.96% of the vote, the Daily Pilot reported.

Dixon said on her campaign website that she believes "the government closest to the people is the best government" and that the Board of Supervisors has "more direct impact on the lives of Orange County's citizens than does the State Legislature."

Candidate information

Registered party: Republican
Residence: Newport Beach
Education: Bachelor's degree in political science, University of Southern California, 1973
Family: Married to Pat Dixon, a longtime major crimes prosecutor, according to her campaign website. They have one daughter and three grandsons.

Experience and public service

Dixon has served as assemblymember for California's 72nd Assembly District since 2022, according to BallotReady. She served on the Newport Beach City Council from 2014 to 2022.

As mayor, Dixon said on her campaign website, she delivered balanced budgets, paid down pension liabilities and oversaw infrastructure projects completed on time and under budget.

Dixon spent nearly three decades at Avery Dennison Foundation. She held communications roles there from 1982 to 2011, rising from director of corporate communications to senior vice president and chief communications officer, and served as president of the foundation, according to BallotReady.

On the issues

Public safety: Dixon said she authored Assembly Constitutional Amendment 12, known as Alexandra's Law, which would allow courts to charge repeat fentanyl dealers who cause deaths with manslaughter. She said she hosted fentanyl town halls where nonprofits distribute free Narcan.

Taxes and government reform: Dixon said she would oppose new taxes from Sacramento and streamline permitting to help businesses grow. She said four of her bills that reached the governor's desk were signed into law.

Small business: Dixon said she has highlighted government overreach affecting small businesses, using the Balboa Ferry as an example of how unfunded state mandates harm local business communities.

Environment: Dixon said she secured more than $1.6 million in state funds for Orange County's first trash wheel, preventing debris in San Diego Creek from reaching the ocean.

Education: Dixon said she supports strengthening public schools with greater local control and parental choice.