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	<title>Observer &#187; Why Labor Might Leave the Democrat to His Own Devices in NY-23</title>
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		<title>Observer &#187; Why Labor Might Leave the Democrat to His Own Devices in NY-23</title>
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		<title>Why Labor Might Leave the Democrat to His Own Devices in NY-23</title>

		<comments>http://observer.com/2009/08/why-labor-might-leave-the-democrat-to-his-own-devices-in-ny23/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 14 Aug 2009 18:31:31 -0400</pubDate>
					<link>http://observer.com/2009/08/why-labor-might-leave-the-democrat-to-his-own-devices-in-ny23/</link>
			<dc:creator>Jimmy Vielkind</dc:creator>
				
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		<description><![CDATA[<p>ALBANY—Strong <a href="http://www.politickerny.com/2118/pef-goes-murphy-tedisco-iffy-union-measure">support from organized labor unions</a> was a crucial ingredient in the victory of Democrat Scott Murphy in a special House election earlier this year. How big a factor will labor be in the <a href="http://www.politickerny.com/tags/ny-23-special-election">race to replace Representative John McHugh?</a></p>
<p>&quot;Right now there hasn&#039;t been a whole lot of feedback as of today,&quot; said Mario Cilento, a spokesman for the New York State AFL-CIO. &quot;Between now and Labor Day, I don&#039;t know how much that&#039;s going to change.&quot;</p>
<p><a href="http://www.politickerny.com/4850/meet-bill-owens-dccc-approved-non-democrat-house">Democrats nominated Bill Owens</a> as their standard bearer in the district earlier this week. Republicans have <a href="http://www.politickerny.com/4607/scozzafava-gets-nod">nominated Assemblywoman Dede Scozzafava,</a> a moderate Republican whose husband, Ron McDougall, is a union official. At one point, <a href="http://www.politickerny.com/3884/scozzafava-democrat-congress">Democrats spoke with Scozzafava</a> about bringing her onto their party&#039;s ticket. (Doug Hoffman, the Conservative nominee, is unlikely to garner union support.)</p>
<p>One senior labor source told me that he didn&#039;t expect labor to get heavily involved in the race, but that only with the commitment of their &quot;boots on the ground&quot; could a Democrat overcome a Republican enrollment advantage. Both Owens and Scozzafava support the <a href="http://www.aflcio.org/joinaunion/voiceatwork/efca/">Employee Free Choice Act,</a> a bill backed by organized labor that will make it easier to form unions. Given the lack of a clear contrast, and Scozzafava&#039;s ties, its unclear if either candidate will get the AFL-CIO&#039;s endorsement. Cilento said that an endorsement is only granted after garnering input form union locals, then political directors, and then with a two-thirds vote of the AFL-CIO executive board.</p>
<p>&quot;It would seem to me, at this point, it would be very difficult for either candidate to attain two-thirds majority support,&quot; he said. &quot;It is certainly significant threshold for any candidate to have to reach.&quot;</p>
<p>The labor-backed Working Families Party <a href="http://www.watertowndailytimes.com/article/20090814/NEWS03/308149972">has not made an endorsement in the race,</a> and it&#039;s unclear if they will do so, back their own candidate, or do nothing. It&#039;s also unclear whether big-money unions like <a href="http://www.politickerny.com/3370/1199-outspent-dccc-nrcc-murphy-race">1199, which spent more money on Murphy&#039;s behalf</a> than anyone including running television ads, will get involved.</p>
]]></description>
		<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>ALBANY—Strong <a href="http://www.politickerny.com/2118/pef-goes-murphy-tedisco-iffy-union-measure">support from organized labor unions</a> was a crucial ingredient in the victory of Democrat Scott Murphy in a special House election earlier this year. How big a factor will labor be in the <a href="http://www.politickerny.com/tags/ny-23-special-election">race to replace Representative John McHugh?</a></p>
<p>&quot;Right now there hasn&#039;t been a whole lot of feedback as of today,&quot; said Mario Cilento, a spokesman for the New York State AFL-CIO. &quot;Between now and Labor Day, I don&#039;t know how much that&#039;s going to change.&quot;</p>
<p><a href="http://www.politickerny.com/4850/meet-bill-owens-dccc-approved-non-democrat-house">Democrats nominated Bill Owens</a> as their standard bearer in the district earlier this week. Republicans have <a href="http://www.politickerny.com/4607/scozzafava-gets-nod">nominated Assemblywoman Dede Scozzafava,</a> a moderate Republican whose husband, Ron McDougall, is a union official. At one point, <a href="http://www.politickerny.com/3884/scozzafava-democrat-congress">Democrats spoke with Scozzafava</a> about bringing her onto their party&#039;s ticket. (Doug Hoffman, the Conservative nominee, is unlikely to garner union support.)</p>
<p>One senior labor source told me that he didn&#039;t expect labor to get heavily involved in the race, but that only with the commitment of their &quot;boots on the ground&quot; could a Democrat overcome a Republican enrollment advantage. Both Owens and Scozzafava support the <a href="http://www.aflcio.org/joinaunion/voiceatwork/efca/">Employee Free Choice Act,</a> a bill backed by organized labor that will make it easier to form unions. Given the lack of a clear contrast, and Scozzafava&#039;s ties, its unclear if either candidate will get the AFL-CIO&#039;s endorsement. Cilento said that an endorsement is only granted after garnering input form union locals, then political directors, and then with a two-thirds vote of the AFL-CIO executive board.</p>
<p>&quot;It would seem to me, at this point, it would be very difficult for either candidate to attain two-thirds majority support,&quot; he said. &quot;It is certainly significant threshold for any candidate to have to reach.&quot;</p>
<p>The labor-backed Working Families Party <a href="http://www.watertowndailytimes.com/article/20090814/NEWS03/308149972">has not made an endorsement in the race,</a> and it&#039;s unclear if they will do so, back their own candidate, or do nothing. It&#039;s also unclear whether big-money unions like <a href="http://www.politickerny.com/3370/1199-outspent-dccc-nrcc-murphy-race">1199, which spent more money on Murphy&#039;s behalf</a> than anyone including running television ads, will get involved.</p>
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