Corporations outspend unions 16-to-1 in our elections. Money talks, but working people have a voice, too. And when our lawmakers write policies and pass legislation, it’s important they hear from workers, not just corporations.

That’s why the affiliated unions of the Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO engage in our elections, carefully considering candidates, voting on endorsements, and using our people power to encourage our fellow union members, neighbors, and community members to vote for candidates who pledge to listen to working people.

We follow a democratic process. Our affiliated unions select delegates to represent their members, and these representatives gather together to consider endorsements at an event called the Committee for Political Education (COPE) Convention. Candidates interested in receiving the Labor Council endorsement submit candidate questionnaires sharing if and how they would listen to working people and champion workers’ rights while in office. Delegates review questionnaires, hear directly from some candidates, and after discussion, vote on endorsements in statewide, judicial, initiative, and state legislative races.

WSLC, AFL-CIO endorsements aren’t confined to one political party. Delegates look at candidates’ records, not party affiliation. Endorsements require a two-thirds majority vote, a threshold that requires consensus to reach.

Once endorsements are made, the WSLC, AFL-CIO starts our people-to-people voter outreach program, Labor Neighbor. About one in five workers in Washington is union, with union members in communities across the state. Together, we knock on doors, get on the phones, talk to our coworkers, and get out the word about candidates who we believe will defend workers’ rights and listen to working people. The WSLC may also donate to particular candidates or campaigns. But the real might of our endorsement is people power.

Our endorsement carries weight with voters because we’re transparent about what motivates it: worker empowerment. Our goal through our political work is to create the conditions for Washington to become a better place for working people tomorrow than it is today.

Many of the policies that support working people in Washington were won through electing and lobbying politicians who are willing to listen to workers, including programs like Paid Family Medical Leave, which has supported families across Washington when they have a kid or need serious medical care. Union members helped make these policies possible for us all by working hard to elect candidates, and then working hard to keep those elected officials accountable to Washington communities.

That’s the power of working people in our political process. We all have a voice, and it’s up to us to make sure that voice is heard.

Sarah Tucker, WSLC Interim Communications Director

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