Aghakhanian wins seat on Burbank Unified school board

Woodbury Adjunct Professor Armond Aghakhanian handily won a seat on the Burbank Unified school board Tuesday night.

With all 29 precincts reporting, 712 votes made up the difference between the two candidates, with Aghakhanian winning 53% of the vote and 5,305 votes, and Greg Sousa winning 46% of the vote and 4,593 votes out of the 11,004 ballots cast.

“I’m more than humbled by the outpouring of support by Burbank residents,” he said by phone on Tuesday evening where he watched the results come in at home with his family and friends.

“It is with much appreciation and enthusiasm that I look forward to working with the BUSD team to serve our schools, and I want to thank everyone for their trust and support,” he added.

The election saw the sole incumbent in this year’s school board race — Roberta Reynolds — along with Steve Ferguson win their seats outright during the primary, leaving one open seat.

Aghakhanian raised far more money than any of his opponents, raising nearly $20,000 before the primary and collecting another $6,000 ahead of the general election.

He was also backed by school board members Dave Kemp, Ted Bunch and Charlene Tabet, as well as the Burbank Teachers Assn. and the Armenian National Committee of America, Burbank chapter.

Like Ferguson, Aghakhanian ran for a seat on the school board in 2013 and lost. Now the two are new faces on the school board, as 12-year members Dave Kemp and Ted Bunch prepare to participate in their last meeting Thursday.

During this year’s primary, Aghakhanian landed 1,500 votes behind Ferguson, launching him into the general election with Sousa.

And he did not let up in his race to the end.

“This campaign has been a lot of hard work. We worked hard every day till the last minute of closing the polls. We talked to voters and knocked on doors. That’s what it takes to win a campaign,” Aghakhanian said.

Sousa, a newcomer in the race who often addressed his conviction for having an altercation at a Burbank school in 2011, did not receive any endorsements and pledged not to spend any more than $1,000 on his campaign.

Sousa knocked on doors and visited with voters face-to-face at meet-and-greet events across Burbank. Veterans from the American Legion Post 150 came out to support Sousa, an Army veteran, and he was grateful for their support.

On Tuesday, he watched the results come in at Burbank City Hall with his family.

“That was the essence of my campaign, to meet voters one-on-one,” he said, adding that he did not regret his decision to not raise money in this race.

“I think it was the right thing to do. I think the message matters more than money,” he said.

“Over the course of the campaign, perhaps people realized there were some misperceptions about me… Results show a sizable portion of voters focus more on the issues than on the distractions,” Sousa added.

Sousa also wished Aghakhanian the best in his new role, and thanked his own voters.

“Armond and his staff showed me kindness and respect throughout the campaign,” Sousa said.