Colorado Activists Work to Build Pro-Working Families “Wave” in November

Timio Archuleta, assistant business manager, Denver Local 111, has been involved in political campaigns for pro-worker candidates since 1972.  From the start of his career as a welder in the gas department of the Public Service Company of Colorado 38 years ago, Archuleta, his local’s registrar, has seen “wave elections” where incumbents are especially vulnerable due to the frustrations of the voting population over economic conditions or other matters.

Archuleta sees a wave coming in November, but that’s all the more reason, he says, for union members to get real clear on which candidates truly support working families.  Colorado Sen. Michael Bennet, says Archuleta, has done a good job since replacing former Sen. Ken Salazar, who was appointed Secretary of the Interior by President Obama last year.

Bennet, the former superintendent of Denver’s schools and a fiscal conservative, has introduced legislation to increase job creation in solar technologies and to ensure that rural residents have equity in health care. He has helped bring $878 million in stimulus funding to Colorado.

 When banks tried to boost their rates and fees after Bennet cast the deciding vote on the Senate Banking Committee for tough new rules regulating credit cards, he co-sponsored legislation to freeze their increases.

Bennet’s opponent, Weld County District Attorney Ken Buck, has opposed job-creating federal stimulus grants.  An extreme conservative, Buck has even advocated changing the 17th amendment of the U.S. Constitution to cease the direct election of U.S. senators in favor of election by state legislators. 

Archuleta says that many Colorado union members are still upset that former Democratic Gov. Bill Ritter turned his back on some of organized labor’s key issues during his term.  Ritter’s loss of labor support was, no doubt part of Ritter’s decision to not seek re-election.  Local 111, says Archuleta, is enthusiastically supporting Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper for governor and several incumbent members of Congress, including Betsey Markey, Ed Perlmutter and John Salazar. 

  “John Hickenlooper isn’t the one who hurt us, that was Ritter,” Archuleta tells members who say they will cast protest votes against Democrats in November.

IBEW’s advocates in state politics, says Archuleta, work very hard to get the governor and legislators to listen to the union’s needs on issues like electrical licensing and wind power development. “We can’t win good laws and regulations unless members get out and vote for candidates who have stood by us,” he says.