Election

The Glendale Municipal Election is April 2, and if we experience another poor voter turnout, 25,000 people, or just 16.5% of the potential voters, will elect important city officials. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, there are 151,391 Glendale residents over 19, and our city website shows that 92,544, or 61%, are registered voters. Of this number, less than 25,000 people vote. A handful of residents decides City Council members, school board members and ballot measures. In this environment, it is too easy for special-interest groups to sway the election.

Glendale News-Press editor Dan Evans is scheduled to moderate a City Council election forum live Thursday on “The Larry Zarian Show.” All six candidates for election — including former City Councilman Rafi Manoukian, city gadfly Mike Mohill, perennial candidate Chahe Keuroghelian, newcomer Garen Mailyan, and incumbents Dave Weaver and John Drayman — will participate. The April 5 election will determine who secures two available seats. The show airs at 7 p.m. on Charter Cable Channel 380.    

Zareh Sinanyan - the City Council candidate at the center of this election season's biggest controversy so far - has also amassed the largest campaign war chest, with $70,065 on hand, according to the most recent financial disclosure filings. “The money is just flowing in,” Sinanyan said. “People are overwhelmingly supporting me.” Contributions for the April 2 election continued despite a request by some council members earlier this month to remove Sinanyan from his city commission seat because of vulgar and threatening comments that were posted under his name on YouTube and other websites.

Mayor Frank Quintero's decision not to run for another term on the Glendale City Council is disheartening. Quintero served Glendale very well with pride and dedication to the entire community. Indeed, he was not afraid to stand against the status quo and vote with the people of Glendale rather than to serve special interests. Quintero was known to stand against rubber stamping the reports and demands of staff on numerous occasions to protect the Glendale public's interests. He voted against utility rate increases numerous times and also voted against the costly and dangerous at-grade crossing project at Flower Street.

All six people who ran for the Crescenta Valley Town Council were elected, according to voting results released after the Nov. 5 election. There were just six open seats, so the only real competition was for who got the most votes, which determines who gets a regular seat, and who serves as an alternate. Local volunteer Danette Erickson got the most votes, according to the council's website, followed by retirees Frank Beyt and Charlie Beatty, meaning they will serve as regular council members.

Republican candidate Sunder Ramani on Friday conceded Tuesday’s special election for the 43rd Assembly District to Democrat Mike Gatto, but would not say whether he planned to campaign for November’s general election. “I wish Mr. Gatto well in his new interim position,” Ramani said in a statement released Friday afternoon. “I hope he will honor his pledge, made as a candidate, to approach our state’s spending and budgetary problems as a fiscal watchdog.

Citing family stresses brought on by his brother's untimely death in 2010 and his mother's ill health, Assemblyman Anthony Portantino announced Wednesday night that he will not seek election in 2012. The surprise announcement comes at a time when the La Cañada Flintridge Democrat was faced with a possible challenge to state Sen. Carol Liu's seat due to his being termed out of the Assembly and newly redrawn district maps. Despite interviewing with local Democratic clubs for their endorsement for Liu's seat, Portantino had so far declined to state his political intentions.

Filing opens this week for the Glendale municipal election taking place on April 3 to fill two seats on the City Council. Up for election are the seats currently held by Mayor Dave Weaver and Councilman Rafi Manoukian. If Weaver runs, he will face his second election in two years, since he won a two-year term in 2005 by finishing fourth in that contest. Announced candidates so far are Montrose businessman John Drayman, who ran strongly in 2005, and school board member Greg Krikorian, who is bidding to be the fourth Armenian-American member on the council.

Robert Chacon Two La Canada Flintridge City Council members up for reelection next year have so far not raised any campaign money, according to recently filed records. Neither David Spence nor Stephen Del Guercio have begun raising funds for next year's campaigns, according to campaign financial statements filed with the city last week. Government code requires candidates for public office to file two statements each year. Spence, the longest serving member on the council, said he would run for a fourth term during March's election.

Judy Seckler GLENDALE COMMUNITY COLLEGE -- It's an American politics teacher's dream come true. The uncertain outcome of the presidential election, which has received continuous broadcast news coverage, has provided a well of information from which Glendale Community College Professor Levon Marashlian has taped hours upon hours of video. The video screen has becomes Marashlian's black board. Marashlian has been bringing video clips to his American politics class to illustrate classroom concepts such as federalism, the electoral process, the Constitution, the role of public opinion in a democracy and the role of broadcast media in election coverage in Florida and the rest of the country.

This is in response to Harutiun Kassakhian's May 15 letter, "Voting process did not leave anyone out," responding to my letter printed May 4. He's from New Mexico, brother to Ardy Kassakhian, city clerk. The letter was a spirited defense of the city clerk's office. For the record, I titled my letter, "Did the city clerk disenfranchise City Council candidates? The City Council race was decided by 57,251 votes cast. There were 14,193 votes, or 19.86% of the total pool of eligible ballot votes, that were not cast.

City officials are reviewing whether a rule that blocks full-time employees from holding other jobs applies to newly elected City Treasurer Rafi Manoukian.  Manoukian, who left his council seat early after winning the treasurer post, holds a second job as chief operating officer of Ameria Group, an Armenian advisory and financial services provider. Councilman Ara Najarian is calling on City Atty. Mike Garcia to enforce the rule, which exempts outside employment approved by the city manager.

Twenty-one percent voter turnout in the recent election is sad, in my opinion, the most disappointing election in Glendale history. There were poor choices; and what did the Measures A, B and C mean? Did anyone really read and understand them? Let's all send our best to the outgoing treasurer, the honorable Ronald T. Borucki, for all his respect and good work. Thanks, Ron. Helen Lucas Glendale Editor's note: An earlier version of this letter used city-provided statistics from April 3, and has been updated to reflect the most recently available voter turnout figures.

The City Council appears determined to appoint a replacement to seat left vacant by Rafi Manoukian, who was recently elected city treasurer instead of scheduling an immediate special election, even as they admit the latter option is the preference of residents. In fact, the council is asking some former mayors if they'd like to be considered for the appointment. Those on the short list put forth this week include Frank Quintero, who just left office; Sheldon Baker, Rick Reyes, Eileen Givens, Bob Yousefian and the man who was indicted last year on embezzlement charges, John Drayman.

In response to the Glendale News-Press editorial, “ A special election is the right answer ,” April 6: The correct question is what process should the city follow to select a person to replace Rafi Manoukian until the special election. According to the city staff report, “The Charter requires that the Council first attempt to fill the vacancy by making an appointment.” The city's Charter states, “a person appointed to fill a vacancy shall serve until such time as a successor may be elected at the earliest of the next general municipal election, or the next county or statewide election, with which a city election may be consolidated.” The next county election is scheduled for November of this year.

The hoopla over hateful online comments that were attributed to - and never denied by - newly minted Councilman Zareh Sinanyan was revived at his first meeting Tuesday with the help of someone who knows a thing or two about the power and influence of the Internet. Last month, Sinanyan lost multiple high-profile endorsements - from Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Burbank) to both Los Angeles mayoral candidates - when dozens of vulgar and threatening comments made under his name on YouTube, Facebook and other websites came to light.

Glendale Unified on Monday bid farewell to longtime board member Joylene Wagner and welcomed recently elected Armina Gharpetian. Wagner, who has held her seat on the board since 2005, built a reputation during her tenure as a state and federal policy hawk in terms of their impact on Glendale schools. She was also known for her advocacy of arts, music and robotics in local schools. A reception for Wagner held before the meeting brought dozens of educators to a district board room, where an overflow crowd listened to speeches about Wagner from the hallway.

The outcome of the races for City Council, clerk and school board remained unchanged Thursday after officials counted roughly 3,500 ballots left over from the April 2 election. City Council incumbent Ara Najarian remained in first place with 10,165 votes, while Laura Friedman held onto second place with 8,088. City commissioner Zareh Sinanyan took third with 7,379 votes, according to city elections officials who counted remaining provisional and late absentee ballots. Chahe Keuroghelian was unable to overcome a narrow gap to pull out of fourth place, ending with 7,023 votes.

With a current City Councilman set to become city treasurer , that leaves an open seat on the dais that could be filled by either an appointment or special election. Both options have their drawbacks - from costs to candidate pool - and likely members of the new City Council said they'll have to weigh all sides before making a decision. However, most said Wednesday they'd like to choose an option sooner, rather than later. "I think it's our first order of business to get a full complement of council members," said Councilman Ara Najarian, who, according to unofficial election results released Wednesday morning, received the highest number of votes.