Arcadia Mayor Pro Tem Paul Cheng on Wednesday warned of a potentially divisive “political firestorm” that may be brewing in the wake of Mayor Eileen Wang’s resignation earlier this week, following the announcement of a plea deal with federal authorities who charged her with secretly acting as an agent of the Chinese government.
Wang, the former 3rd District councilwoman who also was the most recent occupant of the city’s rotating mayoral post, has agreed to plead guilty to one felony count that has a maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison, according to an April 1 plea agreement unsealed Monday.
“Any federal investigation is serious, and the public deserves transparency, accountability and professionalism from all elected officials,” Cheng said in an email to HeySoCal.com. “No one is above the law, and the legal process should be allowed to move forward independently without political interference.
“But I also want to caution against something equally dangerous, turning a difficult moment into a political firestorm that tears apart an entire community,” Cheng said in response to recent comments by 2nd District Councilwoman Sharon Kwan.
“Council members are not federal investigators,” Cheng said. “We do not have access to confidential federal files, sealed evidence or privileged investigative materials. Pretending we do feeds rumors, online speculation and political assumptions.”
The mayor pro tem and 4th District councilman added, “As an immigrant and person of color, I understand the emotions many families are feeling. There is disappointment. There is frustration. There is even shame. But we cannot allow one person or event to define an entire community with one brush or weaponize ethnicity for political gain.”
Following the announcement of Wang’s resignation on Monday, Kwan recalled her requests for nearly a year that the council publicly address concerns surfacing in the community over the now former mayor’s connections to the Chinese military.
“For more than a year, I publicly raised concerns about transparency, accountability, and the dangers of foreign influence in local government,” Kwan said in a statement to HeySoCal.com. “During my mayoral swearing-in speech on April 15, 2025, I warned that foreign influence and political intimidation against public officials should never be ignored and that protecting democratic institutions must remain a priority.”
At the March 3 council meeting, Kwan asked her colleagues to “place an item on a future agenda to discuss whether Mayor Wang should resign or step down.”
Wang, Cheng and Councilmen David Fu and Dr. Michael Cao opposed the request.
“What was especially troubling to me was the reaction that followed. Instead of treating the request as a legitimate question of leadership accountability, I experienced hostility and political attacks for even asking that the discussion be placed on a future agenda.”
Kwan said Fu in particular “became extremely defensive and confrontational toward me after I raised the issue publicly.”
Fu and Kwan have carried on a very public feud that has included allegations by the District 2 councilwoman of sexual harassment and quid pro quos with city employee unions and a Fu-led censure action against then-Mayor Kwan last year.
Kwan said in March when she asked the council for a public hearing to air out residents’ concerns about Wang, she “felt that raising concerns about transparency and accountability was being treated as the problem itself, rather than the underlying federal investigation involving the sitting mayor.
“While I cannot speak to what individual council members personally knew, I do believe there was a strong political effort to defend and protect Mayor Wang despite growing public concern and mounting federal scrutiny,” Kwan continued. “Looking back now, I believe the council majority failed the residents of Arcadia by refusing to seriously confront the gravity of the situation.”
Cao and Fu did not respond to requests for comment.
Kwan told council members at the March 3 meeting, “Given the recent federal case that has brought attention to Arcadia and concerns I’ve heard from many residents through email, text and personal conversations, I would like to respectfully request that we place an item on a future agenda to discuss leadership accountability and whether it would be appropriate for mayor Wang to consider stepping aside or resigning to help restore public confidence in our city government. I hope I get a second.”
Fu then asked, “Madam Kwan, what is it that you point at saying that anybody has done wrong?”
Kwan responded, “A lot of residents have approached us and asked if we have had conversations in City Council … about leadership accountability. And everyone is watching. We’ve been televised, and we have not addressed this issue. I think it is important where the public knows that we do … and there is concern out there. So it’s not it’s not something where you should get offended.”
Fu asked several more times if Kwan was accusing Wang of wrongdoing
“My goal is in asking for discussion simply transparency,” Kwan replied. “When residents raise concerns, I believe that we have the responsibility to at least have open conversations about it. And I believe the community deserves to see their council willing to address difficult issues directly.”
Fu replied, “Madam Kwan, are you reading something right now?”
Kwan defended to her right to read and make notes during council discussions and said, “What I want to do is just simply what the residents are asking for. I don’t know why you’re so offended,” she told Fu. “I’m not making any accusations about anything, but what I just want to do is to bring it on a future agenda. Is that very difficult to ask for? … I think it’s good for the public to have the opportunity to come and to watch us engage in conversation openly so the public understands that we are concerned as well, and we have nothing to hide.”
Fu retorted, “So you’re doing so much for public trust and to build public trust by accusing the city manager of having finagled an improper audit and a jaundiced investigation. That was building public trust?”
It was unclear what the 1st District councilman was specifically referencing —possibly Kwan’s questioning in recent months of a financial audit that showed a multimillion-dollar budget surplus or the investigation by an independent firm of her sexual harassment and retaliation complaint against Fu.
With Wang’s federal guilty plea confirming that she acted as an illegal agent of a foreign government, Kwan told HeySoCal.com, “it is clear that (her and residents’) concerns were not imaginary or politically motivated. This has become one of the most serious public corruption and foreign influence scandals to impact a local city government in our region.”
She added that “this is not about ethnicity, and it should never become about ethnicity. I am proudly Chinese American myself. This is about public trust, transparency, accountability and protecting American democratic institutions from improper foreign government influence regardless of where it originates.
“Arcadia residents deserve honest leadership and transparency from those entrusted to serve them. My hope now is that the city can begin rebuilding public trust and move forward with accountability and integrity.
“I stood alone many times in raising these concerns, but I believed then, and still believe now, that speaking up was the right thing to do,” Kwan said.
She recalled the resignation of Mayor John Wuo in 2015.
When federal authorities raided his home in connection with an investigation into a fraudulent investment scheme targeting Chinese immigrants, “it became immediate public concern,” Kwan told HeySoCal.com. “Shortly after, he stepped down. That moment established a clear expectation in our city that when serious questions arise, leadership responds with accountability and transparency.
“What I witnessed on the dais stands in stark contrast to that standard,” Kwan said. “There was no discussion. No acknowledgement. No willingness to even allow the public to hear where their elected officials stand. Instead, there was strong pushback against simply having the conversation. …
“Why is there such resistance to open discussion? Why is there such urgency to avoid it? Those are questions the public deserves answers to,” Kwan said.
Deputy City Manager Justine Bruno said in a statement Tuesday, “There may be disagreement about how these concerns were addressed publicly, but differing viewpoints don’t amount to indifference, suppressing concerns or a failure to listen. Council members and residents alike were free to express their views throughout, and many did.”
She said that with the federal case’s apparent conclusion, “it is understandable that residents want accountability and reassurance moving forward, and I believe this City Council is committed to providing both.”
Bruno added, “It’s important to understand that the City Charter, not the City Council, governs when a vacancy on the City Council occurs. The Charter outlines specific conditions that create a vacancy, which include conviction of a crime involving moral turpitude, absence from regular council meetings for 60 consecutive days, retaining other elective public office, violation of the City Charter or no longer residing in the district or the city.”
In Wang’s case, “Even today, none of those City Charter conditions have been met,” Bruno said.
Cheng emphasized Arcadia’s positive aspects despite the governmental upheaval.
“Our city’s best days are ahead. No one compares to our first responders, city staff, schools, hospital, mall, racetrack and residents,” Cheng said. “I look forward to working with my council colleagues to focus on what is important for all residents — public safety, infrastructure, businesses, families, and quality of life. That is where my focus will be in the upcoming weeks and months.”
Wang was elected in November 2022. Yaoning “Mike” Sun, her former campaign treasurer and fiance, pleaded guilty Oct. 3 to one federal count of acting as an illegal agent of a foreign government. In February he received a four-year prison sentence.
HeySoCal.com’s previous reporting on Wang’s resignation is available by clicking here.
The March 3 and other archived videos of Arcadia council meetings are on the city’s website.