In the final 72-hours of this campaign, more than 100,000 nurses, janitors and other volunteers across the country are joining 4,000 SEIU members, local and International staff who’ve taken extended time off the job to bring home victory for Barack Obama, Joe Biden and other candidates promising the change working families need.

SEIU’s major GOTV operations are microtargeting key precincts and swing voters, as well as union households, in Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Washington and Wisconsin.

Through October 30, SEIU’s members have:

• Knocked on 1,878,421 doors.
• Made 4,405,136 phone calls.
• Sent 2,562,689 pieces of mail.
• Registered 85,914 voters.
• Helped more 10,982 people vote early.
• Distributed 52,005 workplace flyers.
• Made workers’ voices heard by investing $13 million in independent expenditure ads that have run more than 10,000 times
• Election protection work in Ohio; Lake County, Indiana; Florida; Colorado; Virginia and other places made sure that the voices of working people were not silenced and that every vote would count and be counted in this election.
• Held more than 600 events across the country to ensure voters knew which candidates stood on the side of Americans who wake up and earn a paycheck every day.  

“In these final 72-hours, SEIU members all around this country are doing their part to put America on a new path,” said SEIU Secretary-Treasurer Anna Burger.  “SEIU members have knocked on millions of doors and made millions of phone calls to carry our candidates across the finish line.  By electing leaders who will help us achieve quality, affordable health care for everyone; economic fairness; good jobs that can support a family and the freedom to form unions without intimidation, together we will create new American Dream.“ Read More »

With just three weeks to go until Election Day, SEIU members across the country are stepping up their efforts to elect Barack Obama and Joe Biden so they can bring about the change working families need. Working with Change to Win partners, SEIU will hold a series of events in battleground states each week to highlight the difference between the candidates on health care reform, good jobs and wages that can support a family.

More than 3,000 SEIU members, local and International staff are already working full time in swing states – with tens of thousands volunteering on weekends and evenings — to elect Barack Obama. With just under three weeks to go, SEIU has already:

• knocked on 1,211,075 doors.
• made 6,874,991 phone calls.
• registered 80,439 new voters.
• sent more than 5.7 million pieces of mail about the presidential election to targeted households.

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As today’s latest jobs report showing nine straight months of job loss hits the headlines, SEIU members knocking on doors and making calls across the country report growing frustration and fear from voters about an economy that shows no signs of improving.
 
“I meet families who are losing their jobs, they’re losing their homes—some of them have been out of work for months,” said Philadelphia janitor and SEIU member Audra Traynham. “I’ve never seen so much fear out there. People understand how important this election is. We can’t afford more of the same.” Read More »

Today, Virginia Congresswoman Thelma Drake held a press conference accusing SEIU of distorting the facts about her record in a recently released television ad .

But the Congresswoman’s multiple votes against improving the quality of healthcare available to our nation’s veterans is just part of the story. Read More »

“Dear Governor Palin,
 
“My name is Marshall Clemons and I’m a school custodian in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. I’ve been a custodian for 16 years and I’m proud of the work that I do to ensure that our students have a clean and safe place to learn. Last year Senator Biden spent a day on the job with me—he’s the only Vice-Presidential candidate to ever walk a day in the shoes of a worker. But Senator Biden didn’t just work side-by-side with me; he experienced what it’s like to work and raise a family today.
 
“Because of the time we spent together, I saw firsthand that he understands the changes our families need to ensure we all get a chance at the American Dream. I’d like to extend the same invitation to you.” Read More »