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  • Good News! More To Come?

    GOOD NEWS! MORE TO COME?
    by Garen Yegparian

    http://www.armenianweekly.com/2013/03/05/good-news-more-to-come/
    March 5, 2013

    Last week, the City of Burbank held its biennial primary municipal
    election. As usual, the Burbank Armenian National Committee of
    America (ANCA) participated with endorsements, fundraising, and
    most importantly GOTV (get out the vote) work. It paid off! However,
    there was also a down side.

    In the city council race, the top three vote-getters were the
    Burbank ANCA's endorsees. Bob Frutos won outright and is now a
    councilmember-elect. David Gordon and Jess Talamantes will advance
    to the April 9 general election. In the city clerk contest, Zizette
    Mullins won. It was a squeaker, but she made it past the 50-percent
    mark. These winners owe their success to the Armenian community's
    participation, which was at a higher rate than the overall population.

    That's something to be proud of. In the school board race, results
    were mixed. No one got elected, but only one of the ANCA's candidates,
    Larry Applebaum, advanced to the general election. The other, Armond
    Aghakhanian, placed fifth and will not advance.

    Armond's results are a bitter counterpoint to the otherwise excellent
    outcome that shows what working with everyone in the community can do.

    Unfortunately, there are sectors of the community that obviously
    cannot handle the thought of an Armenian being elected to office
    in Burbank. The message left on Armond's campaign voicemail (that I
    discussed last week) is abundant proof of this sad and unacceptable
    phenomenon.

    The other problem is Armenian voter response. Armond was bumped out
    of the race by only 119 votes! Well over that number of Armenians
    declined to vote. Imagine! What's more, if just 236 more Armenians
    had cast their ballots and voted as the Burbank ANCA had recommended,
    another endorsed candidate would have been elected already.

    There are many people out there who just don't seem to understand how
    important it is to vote. A very strong GOTV effort still failed to
    overcome these people's inertia. Many vote in "important" elections,
    e.g. when a governor or president is being elected, not realizing
    how much more impact a city council or school board has on their lives.

    >>From the water we drink to our garbage that's hauled off, and from
    the quality of our schools to recreational and exercise space, these
    "lowly" elected offices really matter. Couple that with the extra
    needs a largely immigrant, and as yet not-fully-acculturated and
    familiar community has, and the gravity of local elections should
    become clear. Everyone should vote.

    It's even more heartening that strong bonds of cooperation are
    developing between the Armenian and broader Burbank communities,
    pointing the way to success in other towns where significant Armenian
    populations have resulted in large numbers of Armenian candidates
    running for office year after year. Of course, the best example
    of this is Glendale where in just over one month, a number of very
    strong, committed, and competent members of the Armenian community
    will learn if their campaigns were successful. They face stiff
    challenges. Fortunately, our best have also been doing their duty
    as citizens and residents, working with their neighbors, to build up
    their city.

    Hopefully, this is the beginning of a string of successes. Burbank
    ANCA has also endorsed Measure S, which appears on the March 5 ballot.

    Please go vote for it. Please vote in Los Angeles on March 5. Please
    vote in Pasadena on March 5. Please vote in Glendale on April 2.

    Please keep voting, participating, and building bridges with everyone
    wherever you may live.


    From: Baghdasarian
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