WASHINGTON — Leaders of the nation's largest labor federation announced Wednesday that they would spend more money this year than ever before to get voters to the polls in a midterm election they hoped would return Democrats to power in Congress.
"This Labor Day, it appears that a 'perfect storm' is gathering that may well sweep away Republican control of the Congress this fall," said AFL-CIO President John J. Sweeney.
Republican voter mobilization efforts were credited with big GOP wins in 2004 and 2002. With voter discontent rising, Democrats are hoping to regain ground this fall, and labor unions -- the traditional backbone of Democratic voter organizing -- are expected to play a critical role.
Karen Ackerman, political director of the 9-million-member AFL-CIO, said the federation would spend $40 million on its voter turnout effort this year, compared with $35 million in the last congressional midterm election.
"This election, as everyone knows, is about turnout," Ackerman said. "In many cases, we may well prove to be the decisive factor" in hard-fought races.
Tracey Schmitt, spokeswoman for the Republican National Committee, said the GOP was not worried.
"Building on our success from 2004, we are running a massive voter turnout operation that is as precise as has ever been seen in American politics," Schmitt said. "We know it works, and we have been fine-tuning our tactics to ensure we get our voters to the polls on election day."
Last year the AFL-CIO suffered the defection of seven member unions -- including the nation's largest, the Service Employees International Union, which formed a rival coalition called Change to Win. But both groups said the split would not damage voter mobilization efforts, because they were cooperating in many regions of the country to support their preferred candidates, nearly all Democrats.
"In some places, we're working very closely together, and in other places we're working on parallel tracks," said Carole Florman, communications director of Change to Win. "You have a very complex landscape but a shared goal of working to help candidates who will stand up for working families."
The two labor groups each released polling data that reached similar conclusions: That economic issues such as wage stagnation, healthcare costs and gasoline prices will be more important than the Iraq war in spurring Democratic and swing voters to go to the polls.
