**Forwarded Message:
Did you ever imagine that such a Headline would be possible?
With less than a month to Election Day, two Iranian American candidates are on the verge of making history by winning their respective elections for District Attorney and Sheriff of San Francisco. Their success will have a profound impact on the Iranian American story in the US and will pave the path for future generations of Iranian American leaders to serve as Members of Congress, Governors, Supreme Court Justices, and a host of other public service positions.
Sharmin Bock, Candidate for District Attorney of San Francisco
Sharmin Bock has worked in the law enforcement community for more than two decades. She is a tireless prosecutor and a nationally recognized leader on cutting edge criminal prosecutions including DNA cold cases and human exploitation and trafficking. Endorsed by Congresswoman Jackie Speier, the National Women’s Political Caucus, San Francisco Firefighters Union, and an extensive coalition of community leaders who support her law enforcement credentials, Bock has a real opportunity to become the first American of Iranian descent to serve as a District Attorney in the United States.
The San Francisco Bay Guardian has recommended that San Franciscans vote for her, calling her an “experienced prosecutor” and “independent”. San Francisco election law allows voters to select multiple candidates on Election Day, allowing candidates who are the 2nd or 3rd choices of voters the possibility of being elected if no candidate has a majority of 1st choice votes. As the only woman in this race, this voting system could tilt the electoral field heavily in her favor.
Ross Mirkarimi, Candidate for Sheriff of San Francisco
Ross Mirkarimi has called San Francisco home for 27 years. A graduate of San Francisco’s Police Academy, Mirkarimi served nine years as an armed San Francisco District Attorney Investigator. Elected to the Board of Supervisors in 2004, Mirkarimi served twice as Chair of the Public Safety Committee and passed landmark community policing, police reform and re-entry legislation.
San Francisco Sheriff Mike Hennessey, Police Commission President Thomas Mazzucco, and the San Francisco Democratic Party, are among the many community leaders, public officials, and organizations that have endorsed Mirkarimi’s campaign. “When he took office in 2005, District Five … was plagued with violent crime. He personally appeared at every homicide scene, pushed for more police on the streets and for foot patrols and worked to organize the community around crime — and it worked. The murder rate dropped dramatically,” explained the San Francisco Bay Guardian in a ringing endorsement of Mirkarimi’s campaign. Significantly, the Guardian withheld a recommendation to vote for any other candidate in this race where voters may cast ballots for 2nd and 3rd choices as well.
You have a significant role to play in helping Iranian Americans be elected to public office.
Voter turnout and name recognition will be the key to Ross Mirkarimi and Sharmin Bock’s victories on November 8th. However, to see Iranian Americans in elected office, we must do more than offer our wishes of success. Your contribution of $250, $100, $50, or even $25 will help carry them to victory on Election Day!
MAKE 2011 A TURNING POINT FOR THE IRANIAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY BY HELPING ELECT SHARMIN BOCK AND ROSS MIRKARIMI!
Spread the word, encourage your friends, family, and colleagues to support and vote for these two highly qualified candidates.
Both Mirkarimi and Bock were endorsed and supported by the Iranian American Political Action Committee (IAPAC), the connected PAC of PAAIA. IAPAC supports and promotes the election of candidates for federal, state, and local office, regardless of party affiliation, who are attuned to the domestic needs of the of the Iranian American community. IAPAC also encourages and Iranian Americans to actively participate in the American electoral process and supports Iranian American candidates for public office.
