Photo by Kat Cancio

By MIKE LEE

On a sunny Saturday, Oct. 5, DC 37 members and retirees participating in a ‘Battleground Bus Trip’ to Philadelphia spoke about their role in getting out the vote with so many personal and union rights on the line.

 “This canvassing experience was awesome and eye-opening,” said Michael Kwan, a member of Local 1757 in the City’s Department of Finance. “I contributed to my DC 37 family and union, made new friends, and served my best personal interest by learning about other communities and helping out for a good cause as a volunteer. It was such a memorable and cool experience.”

Despite intensive efforts by the DC 37 Green Machine, including door knocking and phone banking to turn out voters in Pennsylvania, the Democratic ticket of Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz came up short by a small margin in the Keystone State.

The loss in Pennsylvania and six other swing states enabled Donald J. Trump to become the first Republican President to sweep all seven since Ronald Reagan in 1984, although by relatively small margins.

Trump will be sworn in as the 47th President of the United States on Jan. 20, 2025, becoming only the second president to serve two non-consecutive terms.

DC 37’s general election efforts included a labor-led rally on Oct. 23 at City Hall Park in lower Manhattan. Hundreds of New York City union members turned out to support the Harris campaign.

At the rally, members were vocal about why they were voting for Harris.

“Donald Trump is trying to destroy the labor movement, and we are not going to let him,” said Donna Seale Harrison, a Grievance Rep for Housing Authority Clerical Employees Local 957. “We must do whatever we can to get Harris and Walz in office. Trump is trying to take what we worked for away from us.”

Despite the devastating loss in the presidential election, the effort by the DC 37 Political Action & Legislation Department and a team of volunteer member organizers played an essential role in helping several State Senate and Assembly candidates win in fiercely contested seats in Brooklyn and Queens. In the 23rd Assembly District, Democratic incumbent Stacey Pheffer Amato claimed victory in a race that wasn’t decided until more than a week after Election Day.

“I think particularly in races like the 23rd Assembly District where it’s a swing district, it shows how important we are and the way that we can impact the trajectory of our state in terms of having a say in who actually succeeds in these tight elections,” said Khalia Kweli, Program Coordinator in the Political Action Department.

DC 37 also helped Proposal 1, an amendment to the New York State Constitution, pass by more than 60% of the vote statewide. This proposal expands anti-discrimination and equal protection rights to include ethnicity, national origin, age, disability, and sex, including sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, reproductive health care, and autonomy.

In the end, the Green Machine will continue fighting for working people, defending against potential impacts from the incoming Trump administration.

“Instead of mourning for what was lost in the election, we must organize and begin building for next year and beyond,” said Henry Garrido, DC 37 Executive Director.