Councilmember Thai Viet Phan is proud to be the first Vietnamese American and first Asian woman to serve as a Santa Ana Councilmember. She was born near a refugee camp in Thailand after her parents fled the devastation of the Vietnam War. They settled in Santa Ana in 1989 after months of living in camps in Thailand and the Philippines, living in garages and make-shift bedrooms with other families to make ends meet. Tragically, her father succumbed to brain cancer soon after arriving in the States. To make ends meet, Councilmember Phan’s mother babysat the neighborhood kids. Like many first-generation immigrant families fleeing conflict and oppression, they were no strangers to poverty.
Despite the struggle of growing up with few resources and relying on the social safety net of her community, Councilmember Phan excelled in the classroom. She attended local public schools—all in the Garden Grove Unified School District, including Morningside, Hazard, Heritage, Skylark, and Simmons Elementary School– and was the first in her family to graduate high school (Los Amigos High School, 2006). She completed her Bachelor of Arts in Communication Studies at the University of California, Los Angeles and later graduated from the University of Southern California with a dual Law/Master of Public Policy degree. Throughout college and graduate school, Councilmember Phan worked multiple part-time jobs to supplement her student loans and to afford housing and tuition, including serving burgers as an In-N-Out Burger Associate for six years.
Today, Councilmember Phan works as a City Attorney and provides legal advice and counsel to cities and other public agencies throughout Southern California. She previously served as a member of the Santa Ana Planning Commission and the Board of Directors of both the Vietnamese American Bar Association of Southern California and the Heritage Museum of Orange County. She also served on the Leadership, Equity, Advocacy, & Diversity Advisory Board for the Rancho Santiago Community College District. Councilmember Phan was chosen by the City Council to serve as Mayor Pro Tem for a 1-year term in 2024.
Because of her personal experiences, the everyday challenges facing her community, and her expertise in local government, Councilmember Phan has been a vocal advocate for the underrepresented and immigrant communities in Santa Ana. During her first term in office, Councilmember Phan advocated for programs for the historically under-represented and under-serviced Vietnamese American community in West Santa Ana, including establishing a Vietnamese Community Liaison position at City Hall, rebuilding the Little Saigon sign, and ensuring that Santa Ana hosted its first-ever Tet/Lunar New Year Festival at Centennial Park. She has also ensured that Ward 1 residents receive the investments they deserve, such as major construction at Santa Anita Park, soon to unveil a new soccer field, pool, and community center, and a major renovation of Newhope Library. In addition, she fought for rent control and just-cause eviction protections for Santa Ana residents — the first of its kind in Orange County — and supported housing development and downpayment assistance to make housing more attainable for residents. Councilmember Phan also supported Santa Ana’s Police Oversight Commission to establish more trust and transparency in the City’s Police Department.
In her second term, Councilmember Phan continues to advocate for further investments in Ward 1, such as allocating $4.5 million of the City’s general fund dollars to improve a portion of Euclid Street. Recently, the City was awarded a $15 million grant from the Southern California Association of Governments to fully redesign and reconstruct the entirety of Euclid Street. She is dedicated to helping residents find their voice in local government and making Santa Ana a safer, healthier, and more prosperous community for all.
Ward map
