November 19, 2012 – When Maggie Hassan won the New Hampshire governor’s race, it wasn’t just a victory for her fellow Democrats. Unions spent millions backing Mrs. Hassan with television ads and an extensive get-out-the-vote operation because she opposes a right-to-work bill to ban labor-management contracts that require affected workers to be union members or pay union fees. From California to Maine, unions used their political muscle to help install Democratic governors, build labor-friendly majorities in state legislatures and defeat ballot initiatives against them. The combination of union money and member mobilization helped Democrats take control of state legislatures in Maine and Minnesota. In Michigan, voters repealed a law that allowed cities in financial distress to suspend collective bargaining contracts. But unions lost there on an effort to make collective bargaining rights a part of the state constitution.
Link to Full Article: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2012/nov/19/elections-brighten-future-of-unions/
