Labor unions don’t like lost causes. And today we have two signs that important unions remain unconvinced that the Democrats can put up a credible challenge to Mike.
First, the Working Families Party — a sort of bellwether for the “progressive labor” caucus — is circulating petitions for their ballot line today. With their labor sponsors and allies, they could thrown their weight behind a frontrunner and essentially made him the nominee. Many expected them to do that with Freddy.
Instead, the name on the ballot line is Kevin Finnegan, a party member and lawyer who, well, isn’t going to be mayor. (He’s a placeholder, and can be removed later.)
Second, Local 32BJ of the SEIU, the union representing building workers and doormen, and one of the three or four New York unions with serious political operations, will have a special guest at its members’ meeting tonight: Mike.
The Mayor has quietly been very good to the union’s members in shepherding through a wage deal in new construction in Brooklyn and a plan for training security guards. The Mayor’s picture is currently atop the union’s Web site. And a senior union official tells us that endorsing the Mike remains a possibility.
