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About Northwest labor press. (Portland , Ore.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 6, 2010)
AUG. 6, 2010:NWLP 8/3/10 10:10 AM Page 2 Unions weigh in on Washington primary races VANCOUVER — Mail ballots went out July 28 in Washington’s “top- two” primary election, and must be postmarked by Aug. 17 to be counted. For each race, the top two vote-getters, regardless of party affiliation, will ad- vance to the November general elec- tion. In Southwest Washington, unions are contributing money and volunteer time to help endorsed candidates seek- ing state and local office. At the top of the ticket, incumbent Democratic U.S. Sen. Patty Murray faces real-estate salesman and two-time Republican gubernatorial candidate Dino Rossi, and 13 less well known candidates. Murray has a 90 percent COPE (Committee on Political Educa- tion) rating from the national AFL-CIO, and is endorsed by the Washington State Labor Council (WSLC), while Rossi has a 6 percent AFL-CIO rating from his time in the Washington Legis- lature. Murray is a co-sponsor of the Employee Free Choice Act, a bill in Congress that would make it easier for workers to unionize and get a first con- tract; Rossi opposes the bill. As a legis- lator, he voted to end cost-of-living in- creases in the minimum wage, which voters had approved 2-to-1. Odds are good that Murray and Rossi will be the top finishers, and will battle it out through November. Other statewide candidates running with endorsements from WSLC include Charlie Wiggins and Barbara Madsen for Washington Supreme Court, and Michael Spearman for Washington Court of Appeals. Madsen and Spear- man are running unopposed. A number of unions have endorsed Vancouver Democrat Denny Heck to replace Washington Third District U.S. Congressman Brian Baird, who is not running for re-election. The race is con- sidered a toss-up by political pundits and is being closely watched by na- tional Democrats and Republicans. At this point, Heck doesn’t have the endorsement of WSLC, but he’s ex- pected to get it when the state labor fed- eration meets for its Constitutional Convention in Tacoma Aug. 9-12 . At WSLC’s political convention in May, WSLC endorsed Democratic State Sen. Craig Pridemore, but he dropped out of the race two weeks later. A Vancouver native, Heck co- founded Intrepid Learning Solutions, Mel Conner, a retired business agent/organizer for IBEW Local 48, hoists a political campaign sign for union-endorsed congressional candidate Denny Heck. Digging holes for the sign in the background are from left to right: Butch Lacy, Merle Munger, and Al Bauer. Lacy and Munger also are members of Local 48. Bauer is a former state senator from Vancouver. The crew, captained by Ed Barnes, retired business manager of Local 48, placed 90 Heck signs in Clark County during the last two weeks of July. Digital Efficiency, and the TVW public affairs network, (Washington State’s version of C-SPAN). He was the 17th District’s state representative from 1977 to 1987, House Majority Leader, and then chief of staff to governor Booth Gardner from 1989 to 1993. Baird has endorsed Heck to succeed him. Also in the race are peace activist Cheryl Crist, a Democrat from Olympia, two Republicans — Jaime Herrera and David Castillo, and Inde- pendent Norma Jean Stevens. Herrera has a 24 percent WSLC COPE rating for her votes as state rep- resentative for the 18th District. Castillo is endorsed by the Washington, D.C.- based conservative group Freedom Works, which advocates Social Secu- rity privatization and abolition of the es- tate tax. The Third Congressional District in- cludes Clark, Cowlitz, Lewis, Pacific, Wahkiakum counties, and most of Ska- mania and Thurston counties. Three Southwest Washington Dem- ocratic candidates for state representa- tive have labor backing: District 49, Po- sition 2, Jim Moeller; District 17, Position 2, Monica Stonier; and District 18, Position 1, Dennis Kampe. [Several other incumbent Democrats, including Rep. Jim Jacks in District 49, failed to get WSLC’s support for re-election be- cause of budget votes opposed by the Washington Federation of State Em- ployees. Like Heck, Jacks also is ex- pected to get a WSLC endorsement at its Constitutional Convention in Tacoma.] • Moeller, an incumbent, is consid- ered a solid labor ally, and has a 95 per- cent lifetime AFL-CIO rating. • Kampe has a good working rela- tionship with unions, said Shannon Walker, president of the Southwest Washington Labor Council. He is di- rector of the Clark County Skills Cen- ter, which provides technical career training to Southwest Washington high school students. Kampe is the only De- mocrat among the seven candidates in the race. • Stonier, who teaches language arts and social studies at Pacific Middle School, has been attacked by political opponents for being a union member. Seeking to represent District 17, she faces a Republican and a millionaire business Democrat in the race. The Columbian newspaper backs the other two, editorializing that Stonier “sings pitch-perfect the talking point serenades of … the teachers’ union.” In local races, the Southwest Wash- ington Central Labor Council made several endorsements: • Tony Golik, an AFSCME member, for Clark County Prosecuting Attorney. • Jill Johanson Court of Appeals, Di- vision 2, District 3. Aug. 9 is the deadline to register to vote in the primary. (International Standard Serial Number 0894-444X) Established in 1900 at Portland, Oregon as a voice of the labor movement. 4275 NE Halsey St., P.O. Box 13150, Portland, Ore. 97213 Telephone: (503) 288-3311 Editor: Michael Gutwig Staff: Don McIntosh, Cheri Rice Published on a semi-monthly basis on the first and third Fridays of each month by the Oregon Labor Press Publishing Co. Inc., a non- profit corporation owned by 20 unions and councils including the Oregon AFL-CIO. Serving more than 120 union organizations in Ore- gon and SW Washington. Subscriptions $13.75 per year for union members. Group rates available to trade union organizations. PERIODICALS POSTAGE PAID AT PORTLAND, OREGON. CHANGE OF ADDRESS NOTICE: Three weeks are required for a change of address. When ordering a change, please give your old and new addresses and the name and number of your local union. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS, P.O. BOX 13150, PORTLAND, OR 97213-0150 PAGE 2 NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS AUGUST 6, 2010
