The AFL-CIO’s Labor 2018 campaign, an aggressive voter education effort leading up to the midterm elections, will kick off tomorrow across the country as working people hold a nationwide day of action. With canvasses and phone banks taking place in at least 26 states, thousands of volunteers will have conversations with fellow union members about the issues at stake for working people in November.
Armed with materials blazoned “Issues Matter. Vote Union” and “I’m Union. I Vote,” canvassers will knock doors months earlier than in previous election cycles. Organizers are aiming to deploy a member-driven political program that prioritizes a long-running discussion about working family issues over partisan labels and personality-focused rhetoric.
“We’re unleashing the largest and most strategic member-to-member political program in our history, sparking change by doing what we do best: Talking to each other,” said AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka. “Street-by-street and person-by-person, we’re having conversations about the issues that matter most: Higher wages, better benefits, time off, a secure retirement and a fair return on our labor. By starting now and putting our agenda first, we’ll be able to cut through the television ad blitz and political noise of October and November.”
Tomorrow’s launch comes in the wake of several recent election victories delivered by working people in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, California, Wisconsin, Virginia and elsewhere. Based on previous exit polling, the AFL-CIO expects union households to make up approximately 20% of the midterm electorate this year.
Contact: John Weber (202) 637-5018