All of the debt was discharged by a U.S. District bankruptcy court judge in August 2011.
Usually, people with a steady income must file for Chapter 13 bankruptcy and establish a plan to pay off the debt over time.
The Krikorians, who have five children, qualified for Chapter 7 protection under a calculation called a means test. Their $80,640 annual household income was below the test's threshold of about $100,000, the median income for a family of their size living in California.
The Krikorians' house and vehicles were exempted from being used to pay creditors.
According to Los Angeles County property records, they also owed more on their mortgage — $495,000 — than their home's assessed value of $340,938.
Greg Krikorian called the debt discharge “the last resort of trying to handle it.”
“Some voters can think all they want, but that's what the fact is,” he said.
At the end of the day, he added, the campaign isn't about his wife.
“Christine isn't running against Mike Gatto, Greg Krikorian is, and Greg Krikorian is committed to staying in this race to give voters a choice,” he said.
He highlighted his long service on the Glendale Unified school board and his good standing and involvement in the community as a small-businessman. He is founder of Krikorian Marketing Group and vice president of business development for Business Life and Senior Living magazines.
He also pointed out that his family debt problem was nothing compared to the more than $16-billion state budget gap that has widened during Gatto's time in Sacramento.
“This just strengthens my resolve to address the real issue, and that's our state's $16-billion debt,” Greg Krikorian said.
Darrell Connerton, president of the California Congress of Republicans, said “it's possible” that news of the bankruptcy could have changed his organization's endorsement of Greg Krikorian.
He added that while unexpected life events may force people's hands, filing for bankruptcy is a “bad business practice” that his group doesn't endorse.
Gary Aminoff, first vice chairman of the Republican Party of Los Angeles County, said he stands by his organization's endorsement.
“Anybody can get into financial trouble, particularly during these difficult times,” he said. “I don't see how that would necessarily affect his ability to represent his district.”
