Since the early spring of 2025, a large, loud, and strident network of progressive-Left activists, organizations and outlets has emerged in Fullerton, working in concert against three council members who won’t toe their line. More than a year of constant attacks from these individuals and groups has, in the view of a number of observers, negatively impacted the city’s civic culture and how businesses see Fullerton.
Those council members are Mayor Fred Jung, a right-of-center independent; Jamie Valencia, a centrist Democrat; and Nick Dunlap, a conservative Republican.
The effort picked up steam in mid-2025, as Jung geared up to run for the county Board of Supervisors.
A few weeks ago, Fullerton Mayor Fred Jung and Councilmember Jamie Valencia were served with notices of intent to recall them – the targets of a network of progressive activists, consultants and organizations seeking to bring city government under their sway.
Jung’s sin was caring more about economic growth and public safety than ideological fetishes like legal defense funds for illegal immigrants. The same goes for Valencia, who earned their ire by refusing their demands on the same issues.
“This new cabal began to materialize seemingly out of nowhere in spring of last year, as I was gearing up to run for Supervisor,” said Jung.
So who is this new Fullerton cabal?
Elijah Manassero And Fullerton Transparency
If this cabal has a face, it is the youthful visage of Elijah Manassero and his “Fullerton Transparency” project.
According to its website, Fullerton Transparency “is dedicated to shining a light on the decisions that shape our city. We break down complex policies, track political influence, and provide residents with clear, accessible information so that Fullerton’s future is guided by its people, not by special interests.”
In practice, its real focus seems to be hammering Jung, Valencia and Dunlap – especially Jung – with an endless stream of invective and accusations.
In mid-2025, as Jung prepared an ultimately unsuccessful run for the OC Board of Supervisors, Manassero began writing opinion pieces for the Fullerton Observer, a liberal local newspaper, and using public comments at council meetings to lambaste Jung.
Soon after, he launched Fullerton Transparency – his vehicle for disseminating video clips of himself and his allies blasting Jung, Valencia and Dunlap during council meetings.
Many observers of Fullerton politics understandably assumed that, at least until the June 2026 primary, Manassero and Fullerton Transparency served as proxies through which the campaign of Jung’s opponent, Connor Traut, could attack Jung on his home turf.
According to Jung, few people paid attention to Manassero at first. That changed when Fullerton Transparency posted a video on Instagram of Jung being ambushed by a process server in the Orange County Power Authority parking lot. Jung was being sued by liberal former Fullerton Councilwoman Jan Flory over his supervisor candidate statement.
“I had no idea I was being recorded — [the server] had a body camera, and someone else was filming from elsewhere in the parking lot,” recalled Jung.
The video quickly topped 1,000 views and kept climbing.
Jung suspects Buena Park Councilwoman Susan Sonne, a Traut ally, tipped them off, because the ad hoc committee meeting he was there to attend wasn’t public.
