With a close and historic race leading the national tickets, the future of the U.S. Supreme Court in the balance, and hundreds of federal and state legislative seats up for grabs, Nov. 8 is going to be one of the most important general elections in memory.
NYSUT members make up a significant proportion of voters in every New York State legislative district. We have the numbers to elect union-endorsed candidates who will champion the NYSUT agenda — if we vote!
Endorsed candidates benefit from financial contributions to help defray the cost of campaigns, the union's massive phone banks and the volunteers who get-out-the-vote at the grassroots level.
"NYSUT members are passionate about the issues, volunteer their time and have strong feelings about those candidates who are willing to fight alongside them for public education, health care and the rights of working families," said NYSUT Executive Vice President Andy Pallotta.
Here are seven things you can do in the next month:
1. Take the Pledge to VOTE! It's easy to do online at pledge.nysut.org and, once you make the pledge, NYSUT will remind you to vote. Urge your co-workers, friends and family to pledge, too.
2. Volunteer at a phone bank to speak to 20 of your fellow NYSUT members about voting for endorsed candidates.
3. Sign up to make calls from the comfort of your home. You'll receive the lists and scripts and complete calls at your convenience.
4. Come to regional labor walks held on most weekends from now through Election Day. Go for a walk and knock on doors of labor families.
5. Use social media to promote NYSUT candidates with positive messages and "shares," "likes" and "retweets."
6. Find contact information for your NYSUT regional political organizer at www.nysut.org/rpo and learn about all the activities you can join through your NYSUT regional office.
7. Learn more about VOTE-COPE. Visit nysut.org/votecope.