Musical Chairs Cause a Stire in 43rd Assembly District, Capitol Halls

Word that Assemblyman Paul Krekorian (D-Burbank) is leaning towards a bid for a Los Angeles City Council seat later this year has set off a mad scramble by would be successors in his 43rd Assembly District, and created new concerns about the Democrat's majority in the Assembly. Speaker Bass, who increased the Democratic Assembly majority to a nearly bullet proof 51 votes in 2008, is now facing a series of mid-term departures that could make it tougher to pass measurers to confront the state's budget crisis. Krekorian could be the third Assembly Democrat to leave mid term. Assemblyman Curren Price will be vacating his seat to fill the unexpired term of Senator, now Supervisor, Mark Ridley-Thomas. Assemblywoman Joan Buchanan has indicated she will seek Rep. Ellen Tauscher's (D-Concord) soon to be vacant congressional seat. In 2008, Buchanan won what had been the last GOP seat in the Bay Area after a costly race.

Krekorian would be a frontrunner in the special election to replace Councilwoman Wendy Gruel who was elected City Controller on March 3 and will take office in July. Although Krekorian makes him home in Burbank and would have to move into the council district, his Assembly district overlaps much of CD 2 and Krekorian can count on a strong base of Armenian voters in the North Hollywood portion of the district. Los Angeles School Board Member Tamar Galatzan, a well regarded city prosecutor who lives in the district, is also likely to make the race. She will have substantial backing from the Jewish Community and from women's groups. Former Assemblymember Cindy Montanez, also thought to be a contender for this seat, has told friends she probably will not make the race. A special election for the seat is expected to be called for September with a run-off in December if necessary.
 
Rumors of Krekorian's jump back to local politics has set off a frenzy of e-mails, phone calls, and meetings by would be successors in his Assembly district which covers Glendale, Burbank, and the LA communities of Atwater Village, Silverlake, Toluca Lake, North Hollywood, Valley Village and Valley Glen. On the Democratic side, Glendale City Clerk Ardy Kassakhian, an energetic, young former official with the Armenian National Committee is mentioned as a possible candidate in the district with the largest concentration of Armenians outside of Armenia. Glendale City Councilman Frank Quintero, who suffered a nasty loss to Krekorian in the 2006 Democratic primary, may be interested in another try. County Democratic Party Chair Eric Bauman is said to be eyeing the seat with the encouragement of Democratic Caucus Chair John Perez. Glendale College trustee Anita Quinonez -Gabrielian, an AT&T executive and close ally of Sen. Carol Liu (D-La Canada-Flintridge), is also mentioned. At least one fresh face is also considering the seat: Silverlake attorney and community leader Mike Gatto. A former top aide to Congressman Brad Sherman (D-Sherman Oaks), Gatto is young and telegenic and close to many of the area's Democratic activists with a formidable fundraising base that could make him a contender.

Normally, Republicans would not have a shot at this seat, but depending on when a special election is called, they could make a credible play with either of two strong Armenian-American candidates: Deputy City Attorney Michael Amerian of Toluca Lake or Glendale Schools Trustee Greg Krikorian. Amerian impressed many with his campaign for LA City Attorney earlier this year. Greg Krikorian is a proven cross-over candidate who has been able to attract the backing of Democrats and Republicans in his home town and received one of the highest numbers of votes in recent city elections. Recent voter registration statistics for the district are  46.88%D  and 25.7%R, making it an uphill climb for any Reep. But this seat has one of the highest registrations of decline to state voters, 22.5% in the state and they can be a bit of a political wild card if voters continue to feel discontent over the economy and the way the legislature and governor are handling the fiscal crisis. Should Paul Krekorian win the council seat, a special election to fill his Assembly seat could be called in April of 2010, but could be consolidated with the regular primary in June.

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