Guest Posted July 12, 2000 Report Share Posted July 12, 2000 ANC endorses Schiff Committee calls state senator a "champion of the Armenian cause." By CLAUDIA PESCHIUTTA GLENDALE -- The Armenian National Committee on Tuesday gave state Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Glendale) an endorsement that could help him win much support within one of the area's most influential voter groups. The other two major Armenian political groups working locally have given Rep. James Rogan (R-Glendale) their endorsements for the 27th Congressional District race, but the ANC is also well-known among thousands of Armenian voters in the area and has more than 500 contributors in Glendale. Deciding between Rogan and Schiff was tough, said Berdj Karapetian, a board member for the ANC's political action committee. "Rogan is certainly a friend of the Armenian community," he said. "The deciding factor was that Schiff has not only achieved the commitments he had made to the ANC PAC four years ago but he was a true champion of the issues that impact the Armenian Americans in the district." Karapetian cited examples of Schiff's record, such as his success in obtaining a state grant for a documentary about the Armenian Genocide and his efforts to extend the statute of limitations for genocide survivors or their heirs to file insurance claims. Schiff campaign manager Parke Skelton said the ANC's support could help the Democratic state senator gain favor among Armenian voters, most of whom are registered as Republicans. "With the ANC endorsement, I think we have a chance of getting more support among Armenian-American voters than Rogan does," Skelton said. Registered Armenian voters in the district have been estimated to number anywhere from about 16,500 to more than 20,000. Of those voters, about 7,000 to 8,000 are declared as Republicans and about 5,000 to 6,000 as Democrats. Several thousand have declined to state a party preference. Jason Roe, manager of the Rogan campaign, said the ANC's decision came as no surprise because its political action committee had made a donation to the Schiff campaign in 1999. "We respect their decision," he said. "Obviously, there's room for disagreement about who is the strongest candidate." ANC officials said they did donate to Schiff's campaign during the primary but pointed out they have made donations to Rogan campaigns in the past. It would have helped to have the unanimous support of the three Armenian political groups, Roe said. But he was confident the endorsements of the Social Democratic Hunchakian and Armenian Democratic Liberal parties would contribute to Rogan's reelection. The incumbent congressman has also gotten endorsements from other Armenian organizations, including the Armenian American Republican Council, which plan to announce their support at a press conference later this week. Skelton and others believe the endorsement of the ANC, an arm of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation or Dashnak Party, carries the most weight but not everyone agreed. Professor Richard Hovannisian, who teachers Armenian and Near Eastern studies at UCLA, said the ANC may be more active than the Hunchakian and Democratic Liberal parties but not necessarily more influential. "Most of the Armenian community is unaffiliated," he said. "An ANC endorsement is important but I don't think it's the single component that will swing an election." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 12, 2000 Report Share Posted July 12, 2000 Schiff and Rogan pick up Armenian endorsements Armenia National Committee supports calls state senator a "champion of the Armenian cause"; two other groups back Rogan By CLAUDIA PESCHIUTTA GLENDALE -- The Armenian National Committee on Tuesday gave state Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Burbank) an endorsement that could help him win support within one of the area's most influential voter groups. While the other two major Armenian political groups working locally have given Rep. James Rogan (R-Burbank) their endorsements for the 27th Congressional District race, the ANC is well-known among the thousands of Armenian voters in the area. Deciding between Rogan and Schiff was tough, said Berdj Karapetian, a board member for the ANC's political action committee. "Rogan is certainly a friend of the Armenian community," he said. "The deciding factor was that Schiff has not only achieved the commitments he had made to the ANC PAC four years ago but he was a true champion of the issues that impact the Armenian Americans in the district." Karapetian cited examples of Schiff's record, such as his success in obtaining a state grant for a documentary about the Armenian Genocide and his efforts to extend the statute of limitations for genocide survivors or their heirs to file insurance claims. Schiff campaign manager Parke Skelton said the ANC's support could help the Democratic state senator gain favor among Armenian voters, most of whom are registered as Republicans. "With the ANC endorsement, I think we have a chance of getting more support among Armenian-American voters than Rogan does," Skelton said. Registered Armenian voters in the district have been estimated to number anywhere from about 16,500 to more than 20,000. Of those voters, about 7,000 to 8,000 are declared as Republicans and about 5,000 to 6,000 as Democrats. Several thousand declined to state a party preference. Jason Roe, manager of the Rogan campaign, said the ANC's decision came as no surprise because its political action committee had made a donation to the Schiff campaign in 1999. "We respect their decision," he said. "Obviously, there's room for disagreement about who is the strongest candidate." ANC officials said they did donate to Schiff's campaign during the primary but pointed out they have made donations to Rogan campaigns in the past. It would have helped to have the unanimous support of the three Armenian political groups, Roe said. Still, he said he was confident the endorsements of the Social Democratic Hunchakian and Armenian Democratic Liberal parties would contribute to Rogan's reelection. The incumbent congressman has also gotten endorsements from other Armenian organizations, including the Armenian American Republican Council, which plan to announce their support at a press conference later this week. Skelton and others believe the endorsement of the ANC, an arm of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation or Dashnak Party, carries the most weight but not everyone agreed. Professor Richard Hovannisian, who teachers Armenian and Near Eastern studies at UCLA, said the ANC may be more active than the Hunchakian and Democratic Liberal parties but not necessarily more influential. "Most of the Armenian community is unaffiliated," he said. "An ANC endorsement is important but I don't think it's the single component that will swing an election." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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