Only 5 Days Left: Voter Turnout Critical to Election Outcome

CWA President Larry (top photo) said GOTV efforts by union members are critical to electing Obama-Biden and labor backed candidates to Congress and statehouses. Behind Cohen, from right to left, are Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine, and congressional candidates Judy Feder and Gerry Connolly. Several hundred CWA and other union members rallied in Charleston, West Virginia (bottom photo).

CWA activists are using the last five days of the 2008 election campaign in efforts aimed at getting union members out to the polls Nov. 4.

"Winning comes down to our getting co-workers and fellow union members out to vote," said CWA President Larry Cohen. "Our work over these last days can help ensure a victory for Obama-Biden and pro-worker candidates who support Employee Free Choice, health care reform and other programs to rebuild the middle class," he said. "We can't assume we've won based on the polls," Cohen warned.

While some polls show Obama-Biden with a 7- or 8-point lead, an increasing number indicate that the race has narrowed to just a few points not only nationwide, but in the battleground states. If this is so, victory will depend on who does a better job of getting out the vote.

CWAers are redoubling their efforts in battleground states where the election will be likely won or lost – especially in Virginia, Ohio, and Pennsylvania where the McCain-Palin ticket has refocused a majority of its resources.

"Our goal is knocking on the doors of 27,000 members' residences in northern Virginia," says Dolores-Trevino Gerber who is coordinating CWA's activities in the critical toss-up state. Last weekend, President Cohen joined with Virginia Governor Tim Kaine, two congressional candidates, and more than 400 members of CWA and other unions in a rally to kick off the final GOTV effort. Afterwards, activists visited more than 4,000 union households in spite of rainy weather. Precinct "labor walks" and phone banking are continuing daily through the election.

In Indiana, another the "Red" toss-up state, members of CWA Locals 4900 and 4998 who spend hours on the phone each day as AT&T customer service reps, are manning phone banks to elect Obama, a pro-worker governor, and to defeat Right to Work legislation. "This has to be a huge effort where everyone gets involved. We know that our livelihoods hang in the balance," says phone banker Jane Phillips Harrison, legislative director of CWA Local 4900. "Every day we talk to people who either haven't heard of a candidate, or are looking for more information, but our members know they can trust on us to give them the facts. Watch a video they posted at http://labor2008.typepad.com/in/2008/09/cwa-taking-over.html.

In Missouri, another "Red" state now considered a toss-up, locals are heavily engaged. "Members from all CWA locals are working evenings and weekends, doing block walks and manning phone banks," reports  CWA Representative Mark Franken, legislative political coordinator for the state. "The amount of time spent by members, local officers, stewards, and staff is incredible," he says.

In Nevada, another "Red" toss up state, CWA and other unions are playing a major role in not only moving the state into Obama's column, but also replacing an anti-union incumbent with a pro-worker challenger in the 4th congressional district. Help is pouring in from CWA members from locals in bordering California – Local 9575 from Camarillo and Local 39098 from San Jose.

In Pennsylvania, GOTV is in overdrive. Members of CWA and other unions are making 5,000 to 6,000 phone calls a night in the southwestern part of the state. "There were so many volunteers last night that we ran out of phones," said former TNG President Linda Foley who is working with phone bankers at a Steelworkers office in Pittsburgh. Statewide, union support for Obama-Biden is at 67 percent, according to former IUE-CWA staffer Jack Shea, who heads the Allegheny County labor council. Watch their video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRanPpYcYPw&feature=email.

In Colorado, another "Red" state now leaning to Obama-Biden, more than 250 CWAers and activists from other unions are walking union neighborhoods day and night, visiting some 16,000 homes in the Denver area with less than a week to go. Their effort is helping  defeat three anti-union constitutional amendments on the ballot, and elect a pro-labor candidate to the U.S. Senate.

Dozens of photos and video links from activists are flooding into CWA each week and we are posting them on The Source, our website for union communicators. View them by navigating to our photo gallery in our Election 2008 campaign section.

Election handouts can be downloaded from the Election 2008 Campaign section on the Source, and from the AFL-CIO's Working Families Toolkit website.

Also visit the CWA Votes site, for a side-by-side comparison of both candidates' positions and other election and polling information at http://www.cwavotes.org.