Clovis Mayor Vong Mouanoutoua is urging the public to participate in the city’s new-style council elections and shaping its growth.

“You must hold us accountable to make sure that who you elect always places the city of Clovis above any of our own individual districts,” Mouanoutoua said at the Clovis Mayor’s Breakfast Thursday.

Mouanoutoua referred to the new by-district elections, which start in November 2026. Last year while facing potential litigation, the city council reluctantly moved toward district elections. This  means the city will be divided and only voters in a given area can vote for that councilmember. For a century, all city voters chose the five councilmembers.

The mayor also encouraged residents to apply for the general plan committee, saying it “will set the course for our city for the next 20 years.” The general plan is a document that guides development and resource conservation. State law requires every city and county to have one.

Patriotism and the “Clovis Way of Life” were Mouanoutoua’s themes. He immigrated to America from Laos in 1976 as a refugee and moved to Clovis in 1996.

“The stories of how all of us got here reminds us of the magical and intoxicating power of America,” Mouanoutoua said. “Our younger generation may sometimes forget that feeling or have never experienced it. But to the refugee, to the new immigrants, and to our military personnel, you all have not.”

Mouanoutoua spoke to about 550 people at the Clovis Memorial District building. The Clovis Community Foundation sponsored the event.

“The Clovis Way of Life is not a resting place, but a constant goal, spurring us to ever greater achievement,” Mouanoutoua said.

Mouanoutoua briefly addressed the shooting death of 18-year old Caleb Quick, thanking the police department for its handling of the case. Two teens accused of the murder appeared in juvenile court on Wednesday.

He also addressed the importance of Measure C, the Fresno County half-cent sales tax measure for transportation projects. The measure expires in 2027, and voters will decide whether to renew it next year. Since its inception, Measure C has generated $2.1 billion locally and leveraged $8 billion more in state and local funding.

Mouanoutoua said Clovis benefits through road maintenance, bike lanes, and trails. Several mayors from cities in Fresno County attended the breakfast.

“We are all in this together,” Mouanoutoua said. He sits on the Fresno Council of Governments board, a regional transportation planning agency.

Regarding Measure Y, a Clovis sales tax measure approved by voters last year, Mouanoutoua said 90% would go to public safety.

State Campaign Watchdog Looks Into Fresno Future Forward

The state agency in charge of enforcing campaign finance law is investigating Fresno Future Forward, a mysterious dark money group that emerged in a recent Fresno City Council special election.

The Fair Political Practices Commission sent a letter to Fresno Future Forward, its treasurer Alex Tavlian, and former treasurer Riley Moore on April 17, notifying them of ” a commission-initiated investigation regarding potential violations of the campaign disclosure provisions of the Political Reform Act.”

Mailers during the recent District 5 city council election from Fresno Future Forward accused candidate Brandon Vang of statutory rape in the 1990s. He denied the allegation, but admitted he was 20 and the woman he eventually married was 15 when they had a child in 1993.

Vang won the campaign outright, but questions swirled behind the group sending the mailer. He told Politics 101 that the complaint “is not on my radar.”

Fresno City Attorney Andrew Janz fined Fresno Future Forward $1,000 for not properly submitting campaign paperwork.

After listing Moore as the principal officer and treasurer — a person no one in local political circles was familiar with —an amended filing listed Tavilian, a well-known Fresno political consultant, in those roles

The FPPC alleged Fresno Future Forward failed to submit proper filings with its office. Fines can be up to $5,000 per violation.

Tavlian did not return a message for comment.

Janz Talks of Pressures During New Attorney Event

Andrew Janz recruited two new lawyers for the Fresno City Attorney’s Office from a familiar place — the Fresno County District Attorney’s Office.

Before becoming city attorney, Janz worked as a prosecutor in the DA’s office. On Wednesday, the city held a swearing-in ceremony for John Tully and Ashley Paulson.

Tully, an 18-year veteran in the DA’s office prosecuting violent crimes, will be chief of the new criminal and special assignment unit. That will include the wage theft unit, which announced its first case earlier this week.

“I think over here is more diverse types of prosecution, wage theft, the camping ordinance, and there’s some other new areas that I think that we’ll be building the team to focus on and to enforce, which I’m really excited about,” Tully said.

Paulson worked at the DA’s office for 10 years, specializing in gang enforcement. She will work in civil litigation.

“(Janz) made an offer for me for an elevated position so it was a good choice for my career,” Paulson said.

Janz talked about the pressures city attorneys face during his speech, such as calls for immigration enforcement from the federal government.

“We have situations where we are being pressured by outside forces to do one thing or another, to engage in activities that have not traditionally been a role for cities,” Janz said. “A lot of attorneys are in a position where they’re forced to choose between succumbing to certain political pragmatism.”

Janz told his new attorneys that the best course of action is to uphold the Constitution.

“Follow the law, defend the Constitution. Then at the end of the day, you don’t have to make any political considerations. You know what the right thing to do is. And so, if you do the right things, I will always be here to support you. You just need to have the courage to do the right thing and never forget your oath,” Janz said.

City Attorney Andrew Janz (left) swears in John Tully as a new city attorney, Wednesday, May 14, 2025 at Fresno City Hall. (GV Wire/David Taub)