Political Landscape: OCC Republicans’ former leader elected to state GOP executive committee

Joshua Recalde-Martinez, a former president of the Orange Coast College Republicans club, has been chosen as an associate delegate representative for the state Republican Party’s executive committee.

He was elected last month by other associate delegate representatives statewide.

“I felt confident, but you never know what will come,” he said in an interview. “When I won, I saw so many people in the party had faith in me.”

Recalde-Martinez, 18, gained national media attention when he was president of the OCC Republicans and posted a video on its Facebook page of Olga Perez Stable Cox, a human-sexuality professor at the Costa Mesa college, calling now-President Donald Trump’s election victory an “act of terrorism.”

The video, secretly recorded by another student during class last fall, created a nationwide debate between those who said Cox had the academic freedom to express her views in a private setting and those who argued that her statements went too far.

Recalde-Martinez said the experience will help him deal with contentious situations in the future.

The Victorville native said two of his top priorities now are helping to increase Republican Party membership and “providing a voice” for college Republicans.

Recalde-Martinez will graduate from OCC this fall and said he plans to earn a bachelor’s degree in public administration through Arizona State University.

Newport Beach Women’s Democratic Club meets Tuesday

The Newport Beach Women’s Democratic Club will hold its monthly meeting at 6 p.m. Tuesday at the Newport Beach Yacht Club, 1099 Bayside Drive.

Speakers will be Sara Holland, who was assistant to the state field director for Obama for America in 2008 and worked at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, and Haley Horton, who co-chairs the Women’s Democratic Club’s Voter Outreach Committee and is a board member for the AIDS Services Foundation.

Seating is limited, and RSVPs are required. For more information, visit NBWDC.org or call (949) 423-6468.