For Immediate Release
Wednesday, October 27, 2004
AFSCME Turns Up the Heat in Minnesota
AFSCME reaches out to state’s Hmong population, launches unprecedented GOTV drive in campaign’s final days
Washington, DC —The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), which has 53,000 members in Minnesota, is pulling out all the stops to turn out its members for Senator John Kerry and reach out to non-members, including Minnesota’s large and growing Hmong population.
AFSCME’s members are especially important this election. While union household members make up one out of every four voters, AFSCME members turn out and vote for the union’s endorsed candidates in higher numbers than Labor in general. For example, in 2000, 68 percent of AFSCME members voted for Al Gore compared to 62 percent of all union members.
AFSCME is also working with the Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance on get-out-the-vote efforts targeting the large and growing Hmong population in Minneapolis-St. Paul. Several mailings in the Hmong language are being sent to nearly 4,000 households statewide prior to Election Day.
In addition, AFSCME is reaching out to 13,000 family child care providers in Minnesota who are not members, many of whom are under-registered or infrequent voters. AFSCME’s nonpartisan turnout and mobilization drive is part of a larger effort to help 200,000 such providers across the country win union representation.
“AFSCME’s efforts will help put Minnesota in the Kerry column on Election Day,” predicted AFSCME President Gerald W. McEntee. “Senator Kerry has been a longtime fighter for Minnesota workers and their families. He has the right plans to end the squeeze on the middle class, create jobs, and provide affordable health care.”
AFSCME, AFL-CIO, has 1.4 million members nationwide and is spending $48 million on political activities in 2004. AFSCME’s aggressive mobilization program will result in each member being contacted at least eight times through a combination of telephone calls, mail, and visits to homes and workplaces.
