Colorado – AFSCME Sister Fights Back

Josette Jaramillo (standing right) talks with voters in Colorado. (Photo by Tatsue Maekawa)

As voter registration deadlines approached, AFSCME members like Josette Jaramillo, a member of Local 1335 (Council 76) in Pueblo, were out weekends and evenings registering voters.

Jaramillo, also an AFSCME Next Waver, registered voters in a state where voter-suppression tactics were designed to discourage registration. Sixteen states have passed “Voter ID” laws and use other tactics to tackle this non-existent issue. How non-existent? Shark attacks are 30 times more likely than voter fraud.

What’s really going on? Corporate-backed politicians hope to stop minorities, students and senior citizens – who are less likely to have IDs – from voting for the “wrong” candidate. Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler (who publicly endorsed Mitt Romney) wants to classify as “inactive” those who did not vote in the last election cycle.

Gessler’s attempts to suppress the votes of young people, poor people, elderly and people of color have actually helped Jaramillo register more voters, she said. She uses his actions as a conversation starter for people who may at first show reluctance to registering or updating their registration.

“I ask people, ‘Can I update your voter registration?’ Sometimes they say yes and sometimes no. If they say no, I tell them about Scott Gessler,” Jaramillo said. “Once I talk to them about what’s gone down with the Secretary of State and what he’s done to suppress the vote, they’re usually eager to register.”

For Jaramillo, her motivation is simple. “I’m a public service worker,” she explained, “So every election from the city council and the board of commissioners to Congress and the White House affects funding for my job and public services. It’s important that we elect candidates who stand with workers.”