World

Eileen Wang family: Is she a US citizen? Journey from Sichuan to Arcadia's Mayor in focus amid ‘China agent’ row

Eileen Wang, the former Mayor of Arcadia in Los Angeles County in California has become a major headline after she admitted in a plea deal at a Los Angeles County court on Monday, May 11, that she spread propaganda in the US on behalf of the People’s Republic of China.

Ex-Arcadia Eileen Wang speaks in Arcadia, California, U.S., in this handout image released on April 16, 2025. ( via REUTERS)

Wang, who assumed the post of mayor in February this year, has resigned after the plea deal. The charges against Wang have emerged in relation to her ex-fiancé, Yaoning ‘Mike’ Sun who has been convicted of a host of allegations, including spying against Taiwan through the US under instructions from Chinese handlers. Sun pleaded guilty to one count of acting as an illegal foreign agent in October 2025 and was sentenced to 48 months in federal prison.

Now, Eileen Wang’s role in running a media website with Sun between 2020 and 2022 has come under scrutiny. Called “US News Center,” Wang admitted in the plea deal that the website was used to boost Chinese propaganda with “fake news”.

Wang has claimed that she separated from Yaoning Sun after she was elected to the Arcadia City Council in 2022 and is not responsible for his actions. But critics point out that Sun was a key part of her 2022 campaign, having served as her campaign manager in 2022.

In this article, we will look at her journey from China’s Sichuan province to Southern California 30 years ago. Her naturalized US citizenship parents, relationships and her two children.

Eileen Wang Family: Journey From China, Relationships, Children

According to a profile on the Los Angeles Times from 2024, Wang’s roots have been traced back to China’s Sichuan province. She was born in either 1967 or 1968, per reports, her page on Wikipedia notes.

She came to the US through her father, a physician in China who later worked at the University of Southern California. She moved to Arcadia in the 2000s when she was in her thirties. The same Los Angeles Times report notes that she has two sons who live with her in Arcadia. There is no publicly reported information about her sons.

Media reports confirm that Eileen Wang became a naturalized US citizen in the years after moving to California. However, there is no publicly documented report that confirms when she got US citizenship. On the contrary, reports confirm that her ex-fiancé and co-accused, Yaoning Sun, became a naturalized citizen in the US in 2012 after a few years on a business visa.

This story is being updated.