The Green Margin — of Victory

The Green Margin — of Victory

By Jon Melegrito

AFSCME's highly touted Green Machine has made a huge difference in several national and local elections over the years. In some cases, only a few hundred votes determined the winners — with AFSCME's "shock troops" arguably providing the critical edge. A few examples:

N.J. — U.S. Rep. Rush Holt's 2000 Re-Election Campaign

In 2000, Holt's seat was priority No. 1 for both parties. At stake? Control of the U.S. House. Dismissing Holt as a vulnerable newcomer, the Republican National Committee poured more than $2 million into opponent Dick Zimmer's campaign — making it one of the most expensive congressional races in the country. "Against Zimmer's name recognition and money, few people thought Rush would have a chance," says Don Dileo, AFSCME's New Jersey political and legislative director. "Zimmer was a rocket scientist and a five-time Jeopardy game show winner."

In danger of losing a staunch friend of labor, AFSCME mounted a massive grassroots effort six weeks before the election. "We had a better field operation; they had more money," recalls Dileo. "With a cadre of 100 volunteers, our members visited nearly 90 percent of union households."

After a recount, Holt won by 651 votes."If it hadn't been for AFSCME, Rush wouldn't be here," says Mark Matzen, the congressman's chief of staff. "AFSCME got his name out there. Each time Rush went out to jobsites, the workers there had already heard of him."

Holt, who has a 91 percent pro-labor voting record, voted to support all AFSCME legislative initiatives in 2000-02.

Ky. — Jefferson County School Board Election

Three years ago, the Jefferson County Association of Educational Support Personnel (JCAESP) here — representing 3,300 members — was battling the school board for not giving support workers pay, respect and benefits comparable to what teachers receive. It was the only bargaining unit that refused the board's offer to simply roll over the existing contract with a wage adjustment.

The workers learned from that experience that the only way to get results is to elect a labor-friendly board. In 2000, they targeted two incumbents who had consistently voted against workers' interests. Their candidates won convincingly, securing a 5-4 vote majority on the board.

"Nobody thought we could win," recalls Peggy Franklin, an elementary school tutor and president of Local 4011 (Council 62). "But with the backing of AFSCME, we ran an efficient campaign and blew two incumbents away. We did the whole bit: wrote letters, made phone calls, knocked on doors. I never realized until then how much goes into winning."

During the campaign, the group signed up 500 new members who subsequently voted to affiliate with AFSCME to increase their bargaining power. As a result, for the first time ever, the members did better in negotiations than the teachers. "We are once again putting together a campaign to replace one more board member," Franklin says. "We did so well last time, I know we'll do it again."

Calif. — Proposition 226

Among the ballot initiatives in the 1998 California primary elections was Prop 226 — deceptively called "Paycheck Protection" — which would have taken the union movement out of politics, giving corporations an even-greater advantage in the political process. It required unions to obtain annual approval from members before using any of their dues money for political or legislative purposes.

The measure was so attractive that 86

percent of workers polled initially supported it. With only a few weeks left before the June primary, AFSCME joined other unions to mount a massive education campaign.

"With our members going all out, we beat back the initiative by 6.8 percent, with 46.6 percent voting yes and 53.4 percent, no," says California Political Director Willie Pelote. "AFSCME's big push accounted for a lot of the margin of victory."

United Domestic Workers of America (UDWA)-NUHHCE, an AFSCME affiliate in California, dispatched 300 of its people to different regions across the state in the last four days before the election. They provided the single largest group of volunteers who walked the precincts.

AFSCME Councils 57 and 36 held many focus groups throughout the state. "The effectiveness of our efforts gained for us a large degree of respect [as political players] around the state," adds Pelote.

AFSCME also activated what used to be called "Project '96" — a group of 14 to 17 AFSCME organizers who were deployed around the country to work in critical races — and sent its operatives to California with enough resources to stop 226. Says Pelote: "Overall, we recruited about 2,000 volunteers — more than I'd ever seen in my seven years in this job. And the commitment we got from our members on the jobsites was second to none. In fact, it turned out to be the key to an effective campaign."

Calif. — Gov. Gray Davis' Election

AFSCME's all-out effort to defeat Prop 226 was tied to Gray Davis' campaign for governor. In 1998, we were one of the first major organizations to endorse his candidacy — in part because, as a legislator, he had posted a 100 percent voting record on labor issues.

With AFSCME mounting a massive ground operation, Davis won the competitive Democratic primary and beat his Republican challenger by 20 points in the November general election.

As governor, Davis has proven himself as a consistent friend of labor with his signature on a host of employee protections for working families. Davis is up for re-election this year. Declares Ken Msemaji, president of UDWA: "As we did four years ago, we'll be doing precinct walks in record numbers to make sure he returns as governor. We will once again make the difference."

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