2014 Elections Bring Sweeping Victories for ANCA-WR Endorsed Candidates
WASHINGTON, GLENDALE—Months of intensive voter registration efforts and grassroots campaigning contributed to lead to significant Congressional victories for pro-Armenian American issues candidates during Tuesday’s mid-term elections, with over 95% of Armenian National Committee of America endorsed candidates being elected to office.

The Armenian National Committee of America – Western Region (ANCA-WR) also welcomed the results of the 2014 General Election, with over 90 percent of its endorsed candidates — both new and old friends – triumphant in their races.

Congressional Races
Top winners in Tuesday’s elections included Bob Dold (R-IL), a former Republican Vice-Chairman of the Congressional Armenian Caucus, who won one of the most closely contested U.S. House races in the country.

“It’s always gratifying for the ANCA to empower Armenian American voters, especially during highly competitive election seasons like this, when our efforts contribute meaningfully to the victory of so many Congressional friends,” said Aram Hamparian, Executive Director of the ANCA. “While we’re certainly proud that our nation-wide electoral participation this season hit an all-time high-water mark, we’re already planning to top this unprecedented effort during the coming 2016 election cycle.”

Among other wins in competitive races were those by Congressman Michael Grimm (R-NY), the current Co-Chairman of the Armenian Caucus, who won by 13% in a high profile campaign; and David Valadao (R-CA), the co-author of the Armenian Genocide Truth and Justice Resolution, with a convincing 18 point victory in a race that was rated a toss-up earlier in the election cycle. Congressman Jim Costa’s (D-CA) race for reelection was still too close to call, as were those contested by three other candidates endorsed by the ANCA: Mike Honda (D-CA), Peter Aguilar (D-CA), and Raul Ruiz (D-CA).

Other high-profile victories by ANCA-endorsed candidates included those by David Brat (R-VA), who will take the Richmond U.S. House seat formerly held by Majority Leader Eric Cantor, and incoming Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY). U.S. Representative Gary Peters (D-MI), an ANCA-backed candidate, won a seat in the Senate.

Both Americans of Armenian heritage who serve in the U.S. Congress, Anna Eshoo (D-CA) and Jackie Speier (D-CA), won reelection, with a host of Armenian American state and local candidates following suit, including: Assemblymembers Adrin Nazarian and Katcho Achadjian, who won reelection to the California State Assembly; Assemblymember Katherine Kazarian who won reelection in Rhode Island; Scott Avedisian who was re-elected Mayor of Warwick, RI; and Richelle Noroyan, who secured a seat on the Santa Cruz, CA City Council.

An ANCA Election Day on-line poll found that 73% of respondents believe that Armenian American voters are willing to cross U.S. party lines to support pro-Armenian candidates, results that are consistent with feedback from previous election cycles.

Western Region Races
“We welcome the re-election of statewide friends Governor Jerry Brown, Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom, Attorney General Kamala Harris and State Superintendent Tom Torlakson,” stated ANCA-WR Chair, Nora Hovsepian. “We’re also excited to see that Alex Padilla, John Chiang, and Betty Yee were successful in their races for new political office. They have all been supportive of the Armenian-American community in California and we look forward to building upon our relationship in their new term.”

While mid-term elections experienced record low voter turnout, Armenian-American participation was at an all-time high. Leading up to Election Day, the ANCA Western Region through its Hye Votes initiative, organized on the ground voter registration and Get-Out-the-Vote efforts that included a heavy field program, phone banking, direct mail, and voter education and mobilization through various media platforms. On Election Day, volunteers young and old, hit the ground running in key precincts, providing rides and guiding voters to ensure a high voter turnout.

“Building on our previous successes of registering thousands upon thousands of Armenian-Americans to vote, the ANCA-WR, in early 2014, expanded the program to key areas through the State of California, to register and engage community members in the electoral process,” commented ANCA-WR Executive Director, Elen Asatryan. “This unprecedented turnout was due to months of voter registration and on the ground efforts to make our community’s collective voice heard at the ballot box. We are grateful to all the community organizations and volunteers who aided in our efforts and look forward to doing the same for the 2015 and 2016 election cycles,” added Asatryan.

Learn about the ANCA WR Hye Votes initiative.

The ANCA-WR hailed the re-election of incumbents and freshman candidates alike to both houses of the California legislature. For the California Senate race, this year’s ANCA-WR legislator of the year, President Pro Tempore Kevin de Leon enjoyed a sweeping win in his district, which encompasses Little Armenia and Silver Lake. He will be joined by freshman members Robert Hertzberg (D-18), Tony Mendoza (D-32), and Ben Allen (D-26). The ANCA-WR regrets that candidate Jose Solorio was not able to win his seat, but wishes him good luck in his future political endeavors. In the State Assembly 11 of 13 candidates won their elections, ten being re-elected to their seats, while Mike Gipson will be a member of the freshman class. State Assemblyman Ian Calderon(D-57), a very close friend to the Armenian community in the San Gabriel Valley and this year’s author of AJR 41, a resolution recognizing the powerful work of the Near East Relief, received strong support from his community and was able to win re-election after a very low turnout primary election left him in second place.

Finally, in the County of Los Angeles, all but one of the Western Region’s endorsed candidates enjoyed overwhelming support from voters. Sheriff elect-Jim McDonnell, enjoyed the support of the ANCA-WR early on in the general election, having met with the leadership and participated in a town hall hosted by the organization at Woodbury University. LA Supervisor Elect Hilda Solis won her election during the primary, as she received over 51% of the total vote. In the County of Los Angeles, when a candidate receives over 51% they officially win their election. Jeffrey Prang also won his bid for LA County Supervisor. Regrettably, ANCA-WR endorsed candidate Bobby Shriver was not successful in his race for the third district supervisor’s seat. He was up against former state lawmaker, Sheila Kuehl in a much contested battle for this open seat. The ANCA-WR congratulates Ms. Kuehl and looks forward to a positive working relationship during her tenure as supervisor. Likewise, we wish Mr. Shriver success in his political career.

The Armenian National Committee of America-Western Region is the largest and most influential Armenian American grassroots advocacy organization in the Western United States. Working in coordination with a network of offices, chapters, and supporters throughout the Western United States and affiliated organizations around the country, the ANCA-WR advances the concerns of the Armenian American community on a broad range of issues.

A complete listing of ANCA-WR Endorsed Candidates and their election results are provided below.

**Ordered by State, then by Administration, Senate and House District
**Names are listed as follows: Name, Position (Party)

Arizona
Doug Ducey, Governor – ELECTED
Michele Reagan, Secretary of State – ELECTED

California Administration
Edmund “Jerry” Brown, Governor- ELECTED
Gavin Newsom, Lieutenant Governor – ELECTED
Alex Padilla, Secretary of State- ELECTED
Betty Yee, State Controller- ELECTED
John Chiang, State Treasurer- ELECTED
Kamala Harris, Attorney General – ELECTED
Tom Torlakson, Superintendent of Public Instruction- ELECTED

Senate
Tom Berryhill (R-14) – ELECTED
Robert Hertzberg (D-18) – ELECTED
Kevin De Leon (D-22) – ELECTED
Ben Allen (D-26) – ELECTED
Tony Mendoza (D-32) – ELECTED
Jose Solorio (D-34) – NOT ELECTED

Assembly
Kristin Olsen (R-12) – ELECTED
Jim Patterson (R-23) – ELECTED
Katcho Achadjian (R-35) – ELECTED
Scott Wilk (D-33) – ELECTED
Steve Fox (D-36) – NOT ELECTED
Chris Holden (D-41) – ELECTED
Mike Gatto (D-43) – ELECTED
Matt Dababneh (D-45) – ELECTED
Adrin Nazarian (D-46) – ELECTED
Cheryl Brown (D-47) – ELECTED
Ian Calderon (D-57) – ELECTED
Mike Gipson (D-64) – ELECTED
Al Muratsuchi (D-66) – NOT ELECTED

Los Angeles County
Bobby Shriver, District Three Supervisor – NOT ELECTED
Jim McDonnel, Sheriff – ELECTED
Hilda Solis, District 1 Supervisor – ELECTED in the Primary over 51%
Jeffrey Prang, Assessor- ELECTED

ANCA 2014 Congressional Endorsements and Election Results
** Ordered by State, then by Senate and House District
** Names are listed as follows: District Name (Party)

Arizona
3 Raul Grijalva (D) — elected

California
1 Doug LaMalfa (R) — elected
6 Doris Matsui (D) — elected
10 Jeff Denham (R) — elected
11 Mark DeSaulnier (D) — elected
12 Nancy Pelosi (D) — elected
13 Barbara Lee (D) — elected
14 Jackie Speier (D) — elected
16 Jim Costa (D) — too close to call
17 Michael Honda (D) — too close to call
18 Anna Eshoo (D) — elected
19 Zoe Lofgren (D) — elected
21 David Valadao (R) — elected
22 Devin Nunes (R) — elected
23 Kevin McCarthy (R) — elected
25 Steve Knight (R) — elected
27 Judy Chu (D) — elected
28 Adam Schiff (D) — elected
29 Tony Cardenas (D) — elected
30 Brad Sherman (D) — elected
31 Pete Aguilar (D) — too close to call
32 Grace Napolitano (D) — elected
33 Ted Lieu (D) — elected
35 Norma Torres (D) — elected
36 Raul Ruiz (D) — too close to call
38 Linda Sanchez (D) — elected
39 Edward Royce (R) — elected
44 Janice Hahn (D) — elected
46 Loretta Sanchez (D) — elected
47 Alan Lowenthal (D) — elected
48 Dana Rohrabacher (R) — elected

Colorado
2 Jared Polis (D) — elected
5 Douglas Lamborn (R) — elected
6 Andrew Romanoff (D) — defeated
7 Edwin Perlmutter (D) — elected

Connecticut
2 Joe Courtney (D) — elected

Delaware
Sen. Chris Coons (D) — elected

Florida
11 Richard Nugent (R) — elected
12 Gus Bilirakis (R) — elected
22 Lois Frankel (D) — elected

Illinois
Sen. Richard Durbin (D) — elected
3 Daniel Lipinski (D) — elected
7 Danny Davis (D) — elected
9 Janice Schakowsky (D) — elected
10 Robert Dold (R) — elected
18 Aaron Schock (R) — elected

Iowa
Rep. Bruce Braley (D) for Senate — defeated

Kentucky
Sen. Mitch McConnell (R) — elected

Maryland
3 John Sarbanes (D) — elected
5 Steny Hoyer (D) — elected
8 Christopher Van Hollen (D) — elected

Massachusetts
Sen. Edward Markey (D) — elected
2 James McGovern (D) — elected
3 Niki Tsongas (D) — elected
4 Joe Kennedy (D) — elected
5 Katherine Clark (D) — elected
7 Michael Capuano (D) — elected
8 Stephen Lynch (D) — elected

Michigan
Rep. Gary Peters (D) for Senate — elected
9 Sander Levin (D) — elected
11 David Trott (R) — elected
13 John Conyers (D) — elected

Minnesota
7 Collin Peterson (D) — elected

Missouri
4 Vicky Hartzler (R) — elected

Nebraska
1 Jeff Fortenberry (R) — elected

Nevada
1 Dina Titus (D) — elected

New Jersey
3 Tom MacArthur (R) — elected
4 Christopher Smith (R) — elected
5 Scott Garrett (R) — elected
6 Frank Pallone (D) — elected
8 Albio Sires (D) — elected

New Mexico
Sen. Tom Udall (D) — elected

New York
1 Tim Bishop (D) — defeated
3 Steve Israel (D) — elected
6 Grace Meng (D) — elected
11 Michael Grimm (R) — elected
12 Carolyn Maloney (D) — elected
14 Joseph Crowley (D) — elected
16 Eliot Engel (D) — elected
17 Nita Lowey (D) — elected
27 Chris Collins (R) — elected

Pennsylvania
2 Chaka Fattah (D) — elected
7 Patrick Meehan (R) — elected

Rhode Island
Sen. Jack Reed (D) — elected
1 David Cicilline (D) — elected
2 James Langevin (D) — elected

Texas
2 Ted Poe (R) — elected

Virginia
7 Dave Brat (R) — elected