Vote in the primaries and caucuses

Published: Saturday February 02, 2008

On Tuesday, voters in over twenty states will have a chance to help select the presidential candidates of the two major parties. If you are a citizen who lives in one of those states, we urge you to vote.

Armenian-American organizations and individuals have been very active in educating the campaigns about our community's particular concerns and priorities. They have urged each campaign to reach out to the community.

Republicans

This week we had to report that the Republican aspirants have not yet issued any campaign pledges targeted to our community. Moreover, insofar as the Republican aspirants have a record on issues of concern to our community, the record, especially of John McCain, is not inspiring.

Armenian-Americans will continue pressing the Republican hopefuls and the party's eventual candidate for meaningful commitments to Armenian-American voters.

Democrats

Last week, we published statements from Democratic Party aspirants Hillary Clinton, John Edwards, and Barack Obama directed to Armenian-Americans. Mr. Edwards has since then withdrawn from the contest. The statements made by Ms. Clinton and Mr. Obama were both strong.

On Genocide recognition, their pledges were unequivocal: "as president, I will recognize the Armenian Genocide," both candidates wrote.

Mr. Obaman pledged to work toward "a lasting and durable settlement" in Karabakh "that is agreeable to all parties, and based upon America's founding commitment to the principles of democracy and self determination." Ms. Clinton pledged to support "a fair and democratic resolution of the Nagorno-Karabagh conflict." The emphasis on democracy and self-determination is significant; our opponents often assert that the territorial integrity of states is more important than the principles that Mr. Obama rightly characterizes as "America's founding commitment."

Ms. Clinton wrote that she would "work to expand and improve U.S.-Armenia relations" and Mr. Obama likewise pledged to support Armenia's development.

The fact that the Democratic candidates made these pledges is significant, of course. It shows that the concerns and support of Armenian-Americans matter to them; they are more likely than their silent Republican counterparts to be responsive to us in the future.

Both Democratic candidates likewise have a generally positive record on these issues.

Of course, experience has shown that candidates, once elected, do not always honor all their campaign pledges. We know that to translate pledges into reality requires continued vigilance and involvement by the community.
We plan to remain vigilant and involved.

Challenges

We have heard from the Democrats. Either Ms. Clinton or Mr. Obama will ultimately prevail and contest the general election. Should the Democratic candidate prevail in the general election, our challenge will be to hold the new president accountable for the pledges he or she made.

We have not heard from the Republicans, though their silence could also be seen as a message to our community. In the absence of any statements after Super Tuesday, and should the Republican candidate prevail in the general election, our challenge will be to get the new president to consider our issues in the absence of any election promises.

Each of us as voters has a particular mix of issues that are important to us. Armenian-American issues are among them. But each of us will naturally look at a wide range of issues when making our choice.

Those of us who are citizens in the Super Tuesday states: Let's make our choices and vote on Tuesday.