Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Doug Chaffee (politician)

The following discussion is an archived debate of the proposed deletion of the article below. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in a deletion review). No further edits should be made to this page.

The result was keep. (non-admin closure) Enos733 (talk) 23:31, 2 January 2021 (UTC)[reply]

Doug Chaffee (politician)[edit]

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BLP of a member of the Orange County Board of Supervisors. Does not meet WP:NPOL. Mccapra (talk) 22:09, 26 December 2020 (UTC)[reply]

Note: This discussion has been included in the list of Politicians-related deletion discussions. Mccapra (talk) 22:09, 26 December 2020 (UTC)[reply]

Note: This discussion has been included in the list of Law-related deletion discussions. Mccapra (talk) 22:09, 26 December 2020 (UTC)[reply]

Note: This discussion has been included in the list of California-related deletion discussions. Mccapra (talk) 22:09, 26 December 2020 (UTC)[reply]

Question - @Mccapra: Orange County, California has a population of 3 million, making it the 6th most populous county in the US. The Orange County Board of Supervisors has 5 members, meaning that each member represents roughly 600,000 people. It is reasonable to presume that such politicians would have a significant level of coverage that meets the requirements of WP:NPOL. Is there something about this specific article that doesn't meet the notability guidelines, or would you apply the same reasoning to the other members of the Board of Supervisors? Edge3 (talk) 04:07, 28 December 2020 (UTC)[reply]
Comment well for elected positions below state level I think mayors (but not Council/Assembly members) of major cities such as Chicago, SF or Atlanta are notable. Below that it’s not so clear. Some may be notable, but as far as I know the consensus is that generally they’re not. Mccapra (talk) 18:44, 28 December 2020 (UTC)[reply]
We certainly do have several Wikipedia articles about council / board members of large metropolitan areas. For example, see Chicago City Council, as every alderman appears to have an article. On the other hand, you're correct that there's a lot of grey area. (Compare Cook County Board of Commissioners, where not every commissioner has an article.) WP:NPOL does not set clear guidelines for county-level politicians. WP:POLOUTCOMES notes that "American county-level legislators are not considered inherently notable", but also counters that "precedent has tended to favor keeping members of the main citywide government of internationally famous metropolitan areas". So to me, this particular article is not a clear case either way. I'll take a closer look at the sources later today, so that I can make a better-informed recommendation. Edge3 (talk) 19:15, 28 December 2020 (UTC)[reply]
Keep - I've reviewed some sources, as I promised I would do in the thread above. It appears that Chaffee is the first Democrat to serve on the Orange County Board of Supervisors in a very long time. [1][2]. Additionally, his district has roughly 600,000 constituents, which is notable itself, due to the size and scope of his legislative influence. State legislators are already presumed to be notable under WP:NPOL, and his district is larger than many state legislative districts throughout the US. Indeed, it is even larger than the smallest US state. Edge3 (talk) 00:00, 29 December 2020 (UTC)[reply]
Keep: I second Edge3's opinion. This article is notable enough that it should be expanded, not deleted. OfficerCow (talk) 08:50, 29 December 2020 (UTC)[reply]
Keep: Subject receives SIGCOV in latimes.com and ocregister.com, as well as in the Fullerton Observer. Orange County is larger (population) than 19 states (it is roughly the size of Utah, Nevada, Puerto Rico or Iowa), if Orange County was a city, it would be the third largest in the US (larger than Chicago, Houston or Philadelphia), it is the 8th largest US county by GDP (putting it ahead of nations such as Ukraine, Czech Republic, Peru, Hungary, Kuwait) so this is not your average county. It is also the main suburb of Los Angeles, a relationship which adds to the weight of the position. Being the mayor and long time council member of a city with 150,000 population that is also a significant education hub in Southern California is signficant. // Timothy :: talk 16:30, 30 December 2020 (UTC)[reply]

The above discussion is preserved as an archive of the debate. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in a deletion review). No further edits should be made to this page.