Kentucky unions boost big Beshear blowout

Jeff Wiggins skipped the Democratic victory party in Paducah on election night.

The labor leader celebrated quietly with his family. "I'm tired," Wiggins said with a grin. "But I'm also happy. Finally, we're going to have a governor who is for the working people of this state."

Wiggins meant soon-to-be Gov. Steve Beshear, the Kentucky AFL-CIO-endorsed Democrat he helped elect. Wiggins was Zone One coordinator for Kentucky Labor 2007, a get-out-the-vote program for Beshear and five other labor-backed Democrats.

"All but one of them won," said Wiggins, a Steelworker who is also council president. "So I feel like it was mission accomplished."

Kentucky Labor 2007 was part of a national AFL-CIO campaign to help

union-supported candidates in a handful of states that had elections this year, added Wiggins.

Beshear beat scandal-plagued Republican Gov. Ernie Fletcher in a landslide.

    The state AFL-CIO also got behind state Sen. Dan Mongiardo for lieutenant governor, Jack Conway for attorney general, Todd Hollenbach for state treasurer and Bruce Hendrickson for secretary of state. State Auditor Crit Luallen received labor's nod for a second term. Only Hendrickson lost.

"...Working people in Kentucky marched to the polls to create a political sea change," said Bill Londrigan, state AFL-CIO president. "Today is a new day for Kentuckians as we bring our enthusiasm into 2008 to mobilize for candidates who will stand with working people."
    The Kentucky Labor 2007 program drew 5,000 volunteers statewide. They helped turn out almost 350,000 union voters, the state AFL-CIO said.

Volunteers organized rallies for union-endorsed candidates. They went door-to-door to union households. They handed out leaflets at union plants, sometimes before sunup. They staffed phone banks.

In the four days before the election, 1,100 volunteers knocked on 17,000 doors and 2,100 volunteers made 72,000 phone calls, the state AFL-CIO said.
    "All of that paid off on Nov. 6," said Wiggins, who is also on the state AFL-CIO Executive Board. "I am proud of everybody who helped all across the state. Volunteers represented many international unions with locals in Kentucky. They showed the real meaning of ‘solidarity,' that old union byword."
    The state AFL-CIO said that based on its independent election-night poll, union voters went for Beshear over Fletcher, 77 to 21 percent. "That was a big improvement over four years ago, when Fletcher got elected," Wiggins said.

On his way to victory in 2003, Fletcher, based on exit polls, won "votes from four in 10 people with a union member in their household," the Associated Press reported.

Beshear was an easy sell to rank-and-file union members, Wiggins said. Unions consider Fletcher one of the most anti-labor governors in Bluegrass State history.

Fletcher got rid of the labor cabinet. He wanted the legislature to pass a right-to-work law and to repeal the state's prevailing wage law on public construction projects. Both of the governor's efforts failed. "But what Fletcher tried to do really got labor people fired up," Wiggins said.

Beshear has promised to restore the labor cabinet and appoint a secretary who is "a card-carrying union member." The Democrat has said he opposes right-to-work and supports the prevailing wage.

Beshear collected 619,557 votes to 435,856 for Fletcher, who was the first Republican elected governor of Kentucky since 1967. Beshear's "landslide

victory…wasn't a fluke," said Karen Ackerman, national AFL-CIO political director. "Working people all across this country are fed up with policies that benefit the corporate elite at the expense of working families. And they're fed up with politicians like [Sen.] Mitch McConnell who play politics with our children's health and promote wrongheaded policies that hurt our families."
The state AFL-CIO said its election night survey bodes well for key races next year. "We especially want to elect a pro-labor president and a pro-labor senator from this state," said Wiggins, who belongs to Steelworkers Local 9447-5 in Calvert City.

The poll, by Peter D. Hart and Associates, also revealed that 59 percent of union voters in Kentucky prefer a Democrat in the 2008 presidential election and only 18 percent want a Republican. The rest of those surveyed were undecided.

The poll did not name candidates for either party.

In addition, 58 percent of union voters questioned said they want to "replace McConnell" or would "consider voting for someone else" Another 20 percent said they were for reelecting the four-term Republican, while 22 percent were unsure.

"Mitch McConnell is one of the most anti-union politicians in Washington," Wiggins said. "Our poll and others show he is vulnerable."

Polls in the governor's race consistently had Fletcher trailing Beshear. Some of the surveys had the Democrat ahead by 20 percentage points or more. "But every day, we ran Labor 2007 like Beshear was 20 points behind and the election was the next day," Wiggins said.

He added, "I don't care what the polls might say next year. We'll have Labor 2008, and we'll work hard like we did with Labor 2007. This is only the beginning. We've got a lot more work ahead of us if we're going to follow up on our great victory this year."

Wiggins hopes labor will score a big win at Paducah city hall in 2008. "We've got to make a change," he said. "I am tired of being dictated to by the chamber of commerce and the mayor and the city manager. Bill Paxton is running probably the most anti-union administration in Paducah history.

"We've got to elect a mayor who will stand with us and elect a majority of to the city commission that will reflect the views of the great majority of working class people in this city."

Meanwhile, he suggested union members might send a special message to owners of Paducah businesses, many of whom belong to the chamber of commerce. "Remember when the chamber recommended that the city commission endorse a right to work law?" Wiggins asked.

"Maybe every time we go shopping or go to a restaurant in this town, we ought to write ‘union' on the dollars we spend to show these business and restaurant owners how many m how many union dollars are spent in this city.

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