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"Colorado Comeback": A Blueprint for Success
It’s billed as the “Colorado Comeback,” and hundreds of committed union volunteers made it possible.
Their ambitious, grassroots campaign, involving CWA and dozens of other unions in Colorado last fall, returned the state Senate to Democratic, pro-worker candidates.
“There was a lot of great work,” said Kevin Mulligan, organizing coordinator for CWA District 7, based in Denver. “Everyone sat down, put their egos aside and worked together.”
Mulligan, his wife, Linda, executive vice president of CWA Local 7777, and Leslie Moody, president of the Denver-area Labor Federation, laid out the winning campaign in a presentation at CWA’s Legislative-Political Conference.
They hope that unions and other activist groups across the country will be able to use the Colorado project as a roadmap for pro-worker campaigns in their own states.
The effort began two years ago after Colorado voters elected an anti-worker governor, Bill Owens. Through the labor federation, union leaders began talking about what they wanted to accomplish in the 2000 elections, and how to do it.
They focused on the state Senate, which was just barely in Republican control. Two Republican members were considered worker-friendly legislators, but term limits prevented them from running again.
The campaign — known in shorthand as L2K, for Labor 2000 — honed in on 10 districts in Colorado that were likely to elect Republicans. They needed to win seven of the seats to return the Senate to Democratic control. Everything they did, they did on their own — the national Democratic campaign wasn’t putting money or resources into Colorado.
Union leaders began to recruit coordinators and precinct captains who would take charge of volunteers and activities in their neighborhoods. “It was really run like an organizing campaign,” Kevin Mulligan said.
Months before the election, coordinators used state voter lists to determine how many union members were registered to vote. They discovered only 60 percent were registered. To win the senate elections they determined they’d need to raise the figure to 80 percent, and push for 80 percent turnout.
They didn’t rely simply on mail or telephone calls, though both were used to reinforce the message. Instead, hundreds of union foot soldiers walked neighborhoods throughout Colorado, knocking on union family doors with voter registration cards and forms to register for vote-by-mail.
They’d gone through training to teach them how to get their message across – quickly and politely. “People for the most part respected that these were people who were putting in their own time,” Moody said. “They respected that this wasn’t just a media campaign or mass-mail blitz.”
L2K succeeded in its registration goal, reaching 80 percent. And virtually everyone filled out a card to vote by mail, a method that’s proven to increase voter turnout.
Between the registration drive and campaigning for specific candidates, volunteers made five to seven contacts with everyone on their lists. Those included at least three attempts for face-to-face visits with voters who’d rarely cast ballots in the past — termed “disgusted voters” — as well as voters who were on the fence.
The campaign made friendly neighbors out of strangers, who’d never known they had so many fellow union members on their streets. As the election neared, some neighborhoods had union barbecues and other events to bring members and families together.
One of the key issues volunteers talked to voters about was so-called ‘right-to-work’ legislation designed to weaken unions. Such legislation was likely to pass in Colorado without a turnaround in the Senate.
Volunteers learned how to explain why right-to-work isn’t as it sounds, and passed out flyers door to door and at worksites. One flyer explains how union electricians in Denver make nearly $30 an hour, while electricians in Dallas and Phoenix — right-to-work states — make $17.10 an hour and $11.43 an hour.
The campaign used some staff members borrowed from area unions but the muscle came from 1,300 volunteers — including about a hundred CWA members. About 700 people took vacation days to help.
And did it ever pay off. The L2K campaign changed the balance of power in the Senate. There are now 18 Democrats and 17 Republicans. Democrats also gained two seats in the House, though it remains in Republican control.
Linda Mulligan said polling after the election showed that 79 percent of the people who’d been contacted five times or more voted for pro-labor candidates. People who’d had fewer contacts still cast pro-labor votes, by a margin of 62 to 38 percent.
With the campaign structure in place, Colorado union leaders are already gearing up for the 2002 elections, hoping to send more pro-worker candidates to office.
“We increased our political power by increasing our members’ participation in this election,” Moody said. “We had a message that resonated with them.”
Their ambitious, grassroots campaign, involving CWA and dozens of other unions in Colorado last fall, returned the state Senate to Democratic, pro-worker candidates.
“There was a lot of great work,” said Kevin Mulligan, organizing coordinator for CWA District 7, based in Denver. “Everyone sat down, put their egos aside and worked together.”
Mulligan, his wife, Linda, executive vice president of CWA Local 7777, and Leslie Moody, president of the Denver-area Labor Federation, laid out the winning campaign in a presentation at CWA’s Legislative-Political Conference.
They hope that unions and other activist groups across the country will be able to use the Colorado project as a roadmap for pro-worker campaigns in their own states.
The effort began two years ago after Colorado voters elected an anti-worker governor, Bill Owens. Through the labor federation, union leaders began talking about what they wanted to accomplish in the 2000 elections, and how to do it.
They focused on the state Senate, which was just barely in Republican control. Two Republican members were considered worker-friendly legislators, but term limits prevented them from running again.
The campaign — known in shorthand as L2K, for Labor 2000 — honed in on 10 districts in Colorado that were likely to elect Republicans. They needed to win seven of the seats to return the Senate to Democratic control. Everything they did, they did on their own — the national Democratic campaign wasn’t putting money or resources into Colorado.
Union leaders began to recruit coordinators and precinct captains who would take charge of volunteers and activities in their neighborhoods. “It was really run like an organizing campaign,” Kevin Mulligan said.
Months before the election, coordinators used state voter lists to determine how many union members were registered to vote. They discovered only 60 percent were registered. To win the senate elections they determined they’d need to raise the figure to 80 percent, and push for 80 percent turnout.
They didn’t rely simply on mail or telephone calls, though both were used to reinforce the message. Instead, hundreds of union foot soldiers walked neighborhoods throughout Colorado, knocking on union family doors with voter registration cards and forms to register for vote-by-mail.
They’d gone through training to teach them how to get their message across – quickly and politely. “People for the most part respected that these were people who were putting in their own time,” Moody said. “They respected that this wasn’t just a media campaign or mass-mail blitz.”
L2K succeeded in its registration goal, reaching 80 percent. And virtually everyone filled out a card to vote by mail, a method that’s proven to increase voter turnout.
Between the registration drive and campaigning for specific candidates, volunteers made five to seven contacts with everyone on their lists. Those included at least three attempts for face-to-face visits with voters who’d rarely cast ballots in the past — termed “disgusted voters” — as well as voters who were on the fence.
The campaign made friendly neighbors out of strangers, who’d never known they had so many fellow union members on their streets. As the election neared, some neighborhoods had union barbecues and other events to bring members and families together.
One of the key issues volunteers talked to voters about was so-called ‘right-to-work’ legislation designed to weaken unions. Such legislation was likely to pass in Colorado without a turnaround in the Senate.
Volunteers learned how to explain why right-to-work isn’t as it sounds, and passed out flyers door to door and at worksites. One flyer explains how union electricians in Denver make nearly $30 an hour, while electricians in Dallas and Phoenix — right-to-work states — make $17.10 an hour and $11.43 an hour.
The campaign used some staff members borrowed from area unions but the muscle came from 1,300 volunteers — including about a hundred CWA members. About 700 people took vacation days to help.
And did it ever pay off. The L2K campaign changed the balance of power in the Senate. There are now 18 Democrats and 17 Republicans. Democrats also gained two seats in the House, though it remains in Republican control.
Linda Mulligan said polling after the election showed that 79 percent of the people who’d been contacted five times or more voted for pro-labor candidates. People who’d had fewer contacts still cast pro-labor votes, by a margin of 62 to 38 percent.
With the campaign structure in place, Colorado union leaders are already gearing up for the 2002 elections, hoping to send more pro-worker candidates to office.
“We increased our political power by increasing our members’ participation in this election,” Moody said. “We had a message that resonated with them.”