Two Iranian-Americans winners in California primary elections
According to PAAIA, Four Iranian Americans were running for elected office in the June 8th California Primary elections. All four candidates were running for county offices:
Andre Manssourian
- Andre Manssourian - An Iranian-Armenian who immigrated to Los Angeles in 1977, Manssourian became the third Judge of Iranian heritage in the Superior Court system in California (after Sheila Meskin Hanson, also of Orange County Superior Court, and Susan Etezadi, of San Mateo County Superior Court, both with Iranian fathers and American mothers). Manssourian received a total of 57% of the vote compared to his opponent’s 42%. Manssourian has been an attorney for nearly 13 years and is currently a Deputy District Attorney assigned to the elite Special Prosecutions Unit of the Orange County District Attorney’s Office.
Mark K. Ameli
- Mark Ameli - With final result in from Los Angeles County’s heated race for Superior Court Judge Office 28, Ameli came in second place with 15% of the vote, while his top opponent, Randy Hammock, garnered 22% of the total vote. Ameli and Hammock will face each other in a runoff election in November. Ameli is the first Iranian American who is running as a lead candidate for the Los Angeles Superior Court. He is a respected figure in Judicial circles, and has 30 years of experience as litigator, including 15 years as mediator and arbitrator and 15 years as Judge pro temp. He is praised by many in the non-Iranian media as a litigator with judicial temperament. His campaign video was posted on Kodoom earlier. To support him for the November election you can visit his official website.
Elle Falahat
- Elle Falahat – Iranian American Falahat aimed to make history by becoming the first ever female district attorney for Contra Costa County. In her bid for the top prosecutor’s job in Contra Costa County, Falahat received over 20,000 votes and came in third place behind two established and influential male candidates. Raised in Santa Clara County California, Falahat received her bachelor’s degree from San Jose State and her law degree from Lincoln University. She worked as a Deputy District Attorney in the Ventura County District Attorney’s office and currently runs her own private practice.
Siavash Gharib
- Siavash Gharib – A Principal Appraiser and an 18 year veteran of the Los Angeles County Assessor’s Office, Gharib was running in the hotly contested campaign for Los Angeles County Assessor. In the election, he received a total of 11,418 votes and fell behind other candidates.
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