Union workers are pushing for Newsom in the waning days of the withdrawal campaign

Labor has been instrumental in Newsom’s effort to keep its job going, and if it is able to avoid a Republican-backed recovery effort on Sept. 14, it could have dozens of unions accompanying it to thank- ho. Union workers in California have not only become Newsom’s base because of their ties to work, but because Newsom also benefits from deep support among color voters, many of whom formed the audience. of the governor’s speech on Sunday.

This is an effort that Newsom clearly took into account while sweating in Chevrolet’s bed.

“I just want, from the bottom of my heart, to thank all the people who work here, all those essential workers here in the state of California,” Newsom said, praising the workers for their efforts during the coronavirus pandemic. “One thing I’m determined to do is not forget … You had your back and I want you to know, I have your back.”

Newsom told CNN after the event that the reason work is so important to him is simply because “no one knows how to organize better than work.”

“It’s boots on the ground, it’s knocking on the door. It’s text messaging,” said Newsom, whose campaign is primarily concerned with getting Democrats to the polls, not being in favor of that withdrawal. . “It’s not a persuasion campaign. I mean, you’ll still find people who may be on the fence, but it’s really about participation. Labor knows how to get out.”

In addition to labor, unions have helped push the effort against withdrawal. The Newsom campaign told CNN Sunday that local chapters of the International Union of Service Employees, the California Teachers Association, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Unitors of America, the Council of States of Construction and State Construction, the International Union of Workers. from North America, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and the United Association have contributed $ 14 million combined to combat the withdrawal and protect Newsom.

Newsom’s main opponent, Republican Larry Elder, has tried to turn Newsom’s union support, especially of the unions representing teachers, into a powerful attack on him.

Elder has argued that the teachers ’union is the biggest hurdle preventing their plans from introducing more school options to improve the education of California children. He has harshly criticized the way Newsom closed schools in California during the pandemic, arguing that it has had a disproportionately negative effect on black and brown students, and has criticized Newsom’s close relationship with the teachers’ union – calling governor “. seen in the unions” – as a reason why he went along with these plans.

“The main obstacle to school choice is the teachers’ union, ”Elder said at an event in Ontario, California on Saturday. “Who’s my opponent’s number one funder? Teachers Union!”

And in an interview with CNN last week, Elder criticized Newsom’s money from the unions: “My opponent can raise an unlimited amount of money, as he has raised about $ 50 million from the usual suspects: union of teachers, public sector unions “.

Democrats outnumber Republicans nearly 2-1 in a state that President Joe Biden won by nearly 30 points. But polls conducted throughout the summer showed that Republican voters were much more encouraged than Democratic voters to vote in the withdrawal. Still, to overcome their mathematical problem in the Golden State, Republicans would have to post a massive turnout while Democratic turnout remained relatively low. Early voting suggests that Newsom has made progress in convincing Democrats that there is a real risk to its agenda if they do not participate.

For union workers who spent Sunday afternoons eating tacos, dancing with Selena and listening to Newsom, the recovery effort was not just an affront to the work they did to choose Newsom a few years ago, but an effort. inextricably linked to race and immigration.

“Organized work has been key to making sure it becomes an intense blue state,” said Hugo Soto-Martinez, a 38-year-old hotel worker who is represented by Unite Here Local 11. “The values ​​of the state reflects the union the values ​​and the workers, the immigrants, the people who work to get a salary in this country ”.

Workers like Soto-Martinez have been devoting considerable time to keeping Newsom in charge, either by knocking on doors or working on phones to connect with people about the upcoming memory.

Shavon Moore-Cage, a worker represented by AFSCME District Council 36, told CNN that she called voters at least three nights a week after cooking dinner. The reason: their union is diverse and they want to make sure diversity is celebrated in California, not attacked.

“The unions here in California are like a melting pot of people. We represent all cultures, we represent all races, we represent all ethnic groups,” Moore-Cage said. Asked about Elder, the answer was forceful: “He doesn’t represent all colors or all nationality. He may say yes, but his action speaks louder than words.”

The seniors ’campaign did not respond to a request for comment on this story.

In addition to the workforce, Newsom has also leaned on national Democratic figures to increase interest in the party base, meeting Saturday with Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren in Los Angeles, Sen. Amy Klobuchar , on Sunday in Orange County, and will meet with Vice President Kamala Harris on Wednesday in Northern California.

But for the labor leaders Newsom met on Sunday, the withdrawal is as much about Newsom as it is about their union rights.

“This is not just an attack on the governor,” Gloria Alvarado, executive director of the Orange County Labor Federation, said during her speech at an event with Newsom and Klobuchar in Orange County on Sunday. “This is an attack on the workhouse.”