At the SEIU convention, the senator reiterated his pledge to make expanded healthcare his first priority if elected, drawing raucous applause from a union that backed former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean in the Democratic primaries.
The 1.6-million-member union, the largest in the AFL-CIO, is dedicating more than $40 million to help Kerry get elected, much of which will compensate 2,004 members for campaigning in battleground states. With an additional 50,000 volunteers, the union aims to knock on 10 million doors by election day.
Anna Burger, the SEIU's secretary-treasurer, said members had been motivated by Kerry's pledge to expand healthcare, a signature issue for the union.
"They believe that John Kerry has the same values that they do -- that he's committed to economic justice," she said.
Jill Hurst, an organizer at a janitors local in Boston, said that although she had been excited by Dean in the primaries, she was "perfectly happy" with Kerry.
"I think it's so important that we get rid of Bush. And I hate his policies so much, it was easy to make the switch," Hurst said.
Today, Kerry is set to address the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees international convention in Anaheim.
He is spending much of his two days in California raising money. After collecting more than $4 million for his campaign and the Democratic Party in the Bay Area on Wednesday, Kerry is expected to pick up several million dollars more at a star-studded concert fundraiser at Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles tonight.
"A hundred and fifty years ago, prospectors came out here to California looking for silver and gold," Kerry quipped at his breakfast fundraiser. "And here I am, doing the same thing."
