DOWNTOWN — As the state and county Democratic parties make endorsements and shape their platforms over the next two years, three additional Santa Monicans will have the chance to weigh in.
At a meeting on Sunday, Genise Schnitman, Ben Allen and Chris Braun were elected to two-year terms as delegates to the California Democratic Party from the 41st Assembly District.
Under its rules, representatives from the district were charged with selecting six men and six women to become delegates. The election took place at a meeting in Topanga attended by about 145 Democrats from the district, Braun said.
Schnitman, a Santa Monicans for Renters' Rights steering committee member, vice president of programs for the Santa Monica Democratic Club and wife of Santa Monica City Councilman Kevin McKeown, was the top vote-getter among the 15 female candidates.
Braun, a member of Santa Monica’s Rent Control Board, received the most votes among the men, and also was chosen to be the district’s representative on the state Democratic Party Executive Board.
Allen will serve as a delegate in addition to his role as vice president of the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District board.
Schnitman said she was “gratified and honored” to have been selected.
“I look forward to taking part in the project of restoring the state's former status as a place where Californians can realize their individual dreams because we have mobilized the collective will to reconstruct the resources and infrastructure that make that possible,” she said.
Two other Santa Monicans, Jon Katz and Katherine Hennigan, were elected alternates.
State elected leaders from the Democratic party also have the authority to appoint delegates.
news@www.smdp.com
