By james art 
BY GAREN YEGPARIAN
This piece has two parts. The first is a list of approvals, the second is a discussion of an issue that plagued us until about a decade ago, and which I thought was resolved, but seems to have reared its destructive head again. Confirmations are local to California, Los Angeles County, and cities with large Armenian populations, so you may choose to skip this part depending on where you live. Please see the relevant ANCA websites for your area for many more endorsements.
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The candidate endorsements below are all ANCA’s in the case of cities, but my own recommendations for the other positions, as well as those for the various ballot measures. I have included local ANCA endorsements because they did not appear on the regional ANCA website when I last checked.
In Burbank, Constantine Anthony and Judy Wilk received a City Council nomination, as they did
Laurette Cano (1), Emily Weisberg (3), Armond Aghakhanian (5), tagged with their respective districts. Burbank ANCA also recommends “yes” to Burbank Unified School District – Measure ABC to fund updating school facilities. This and other bond measures require a 55% majority of the votes cast to pass.
There are no elections for elective offices in Glendale, as they were already filled in March during the California primary. However, the Glendale ANCA recommends a yes vote on the Glendale Community College – GCC measure, again for facility upgrades. There’s also the Glendale Unified School District Measure X, which should get a yes vote because it appears to be an administrative process that needs voter approval.
In Montebello, Jack Hadjinian fought to return to the City Council and was approved.
In Los Angeles, another favorite son, Adrin Nazarian, is running for City Council in District 2 to replace Paul Krekorian, who has been kicked out, vote for him, of course! Charter amendments are also on the ballot in Los Angeles, most the result of a long process to make redistricting and related processes more democratic and less politically self-serving. All of the following deserve a yes vote:
HH- City Government, Appointments and Elections.
II- City administration and operations.
ER- Authority of the City Commission on Ethics and Operational Independence.
FF- Los Angeles Fire and Police Pensions; Officers of the peace.
LL – Los Angeles Unified School District Independent Redistricting Commission. LAUSD (1) – Measures safety and improvements in local public schools.
A heated race for district attorney is heating up at the Los Angeles County level, with incumbent George Gascon vilified for his more enlightened and balanced approach to law enforcement. Problems that are nation-wide are blamed on him, ignoring such achievements as the enforcement of environmental laws that protect everyone from harm caused by irresponsible actors. Please vote for it.
There are three seats for the LA Community College Board of Trustees, my suggestions marked with the appropriate seat number are Nancy Perlman (3), Michelle M. Henderson (5), Kelsey Ieno (7).
Then there are the judges… This is always a problem as no one seriously interferes in these competitions. My recommendations are based primarily on the Los Angeles Bar Association’s qualification ratings (“well qualified”, “qualified”, “not qualified”). The better rated of any pair appearing on the ballot is the one I went with, unless they both had the same rating, in which case I did some research to come to a conclusion. My recommendations with the corresponding office number are: George A. Turner Jr. (39), Renee Rose (48), Sharon Ransom (97), Stephen Yee Mack (135), and Tracy M. Blount (137).
On Measure G, an amendment to the Los Angeles County Charter for Government Structure, Ethics and Accountability, vote yes because it expands the board of supervisors from five to nine members and adds a mayor-like position to run the administration. This creates more representative governance and better governance. Vote no on Measure A – Homeless and Affordable Housing Services Ordinance because it effectively shifts the existing tax burden onto more people who can least afford it. Vote yes on Measure E- Los Angeles County Consolidated Fire Protection Emergency Response and Infrastructure Ordinance if it’s on your ballot (non-incorporated only [non-city]) parts of Los Angeles County will be affected by this measure. It helps pay for more firefighters, a growing need, and exempts low-income seniors from the 6-cent-per-square-foot property tax it creates.
At the state level, I recommend a yes vote on all measures. It also states whether they are laws (statutes) or constitutional amendments and where they originated, in the legislature or through public signature gathering. Some of the titles are self-explanatory, so I won’t comment on them as they appear below. The numbers in front of each are their designations on your ballot.
2- Authorizes bonds for public schools and community colleges. Legislative status;
3- Constitutional right to marry. Legislative Constitutional Amendment – This measure simply updates the California Constitution to reflect the current legal status of who can marry whom;
4- Authorizes bonds for safe drinking water, wildfire prevention, and protecting communities and natural lands from climate risks. Legislative Status – This is very important as it not only allows for continued funding for the expansion of outdoor recreation lands, but also prepares for the impacts of climate change;
5- Allows local bonds for affordable housing and public infrastructure with 55% voter approval. Legislative Constitutional Amendment – This allows cities and counties to pass bond measures with a more reasonable level of voter approval than the current level.
6- Removes the constitutional provision allowing involuntary servitude for incarcerated persons. Legislative constitutional amendment. If you thought slavery-like conditions were a thing of the past, seeing the conditions in California prisons will change your mind. This measure corrects the heinous abuse of prisoners.
32- Raises the minimum wage. Statute of the initiative. Unless you think someone who works full time should NOT be able to live a decent life, this measure is for you.
33- Extends the powers of local authorities to introduce rent control of residential properties. Statute of the initiative. Ignore the hype surrounding this measure from the real estate industry. This measure will help countless families struggling to pay their rent and will reduce one of the pressures contributing to the homelessness crisis.
34- Limits spending of prescription drug revenue by certain health care providers. Statute of the initiative. Instead of lining their pockets with the profits from reduced drug costs provided by the government, healthcare providers would have to spend 98% of those profits on patient care.
35- Provides permanent funding for Medi-Cal health services. Statute of the initiative. Even medical organizations support this measure, making the current source of funding permanent.
36- Allows felony charges and increases sentences for certain drug and theft offenses. Statute of the initiative. As the dollar level to determine the severity of the theft increased, a reasonable change, the number of thefts increased. This measure makes a reasonable adjustment by enabling the prosecution of repeat offenders who keep their crimes under wraps so that law enforcement does not bother to hold them accountable
Finally, in the Senate race, the Armenian vote will naturally go to Adam Schiff, a longtime strong supporter. The reason I’m even talking about this contest is because you have to vote for it “TWICE”! This is because there are two choices for this location. One is for the very short remainder of the current term, and the other is for the full six-year term that begins in January 2025.
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The problem I mentioned above, which I think even fits the term suffering, is the natural but politically unsophisticated tendency of our community to support Armenian candidates, no matter what they stand for, who they are running against, or how viable they are.
In this discussion, the key point to keep in mind is that our or any other interest group’s reason for participating in the electoral process is to have people in office who support our interests and issues. These are the people who will set policy, pass legislation and allocate funding. If the candidate we support is not elected, then (in almost all cases) we stay out. Our access to the official is minimal and our ability to influence decisions is negligible.
Which brings us to the most notable current example. In California’s 30th congressional district, an Armenian is running as a Republican against the Democratic candidate.
In this district, voter registration is more than 3 to 1 Democrat to Republican, and about the same if minor parties are considered based on their ideological proximity to the two major parties. Plus, over 23% of registered voters are unaffiliated, and they tend to split in about the same proportions as those who are affiliated when considering which way they lean, Democrat or Republican. Armenians registered in the district are just under 20% of the total number.
Why all these numbers? To show that no Republican has a chance of being elected from this district, barring some shocking scandal involving the Democratic nominee. In this case, even if all Armenians in the district vote for the Republican Armenian, he will still not be elected. Do the math yourself, remembering that if Armenians are registered 50-50 in each party, you only need to add about half the Armenians to the Republicans, since half are already included there!
The ANCA received much criticism for supporting the Democratic candidate over the Republican candidate, Armenian. The bottom line here is that the ANCA should act irresponsibly and support an Armenian candidate at the cost of losing the ability to pursue Armenian concerns with the candidate who is sure to win.
I hope I’ve made it clear how important it is to think rationally, informedly and practically when it comes to who we should support as a community.
Please don’t be surprised at the presidential race. I don’t think either candidate is good on Armenian issues. Think as a citizen who is more competent and fit to govern, or vote for a minor party candidate whose politics align with yours.
Whatever you decide on any of the above or other choices, be sure to get out and VOTE, VOTE, VOTE!