1199SEIU endorses Attorney General Martha Coakley For U.S. Senate Seat

1199SEIU announced today its endorsement of Attorney General Martha Coakley for U.S. Senate at a press conference held at the 1199SEIU union hall in Boston.

Coakley, the state's first female attorney general, is an established leader and a longtime proponent for worker's rights. She is a strict enforcer of wage and hour laws and recently announced enhanced oversight of compensation practices for executives of Massachusetts' health care organizations.

"I can be a different kind of leader," said Coakley at a senate forum held earlier this month. The attorney general has guaranteed that she will be strong supporter of the rights of working class people.

"Martha, through your efforts as attorney general, you have helped give a voice to the voiceless, and helped working families protect what they have earned," said Teia Searcy, an 1199SEIU member and PCA. "And we are going to do what it takes to make sure you are able to keep up that fight for us and in Washington D.C."

Earlier this month, all of the Senate candidates had been invited to a forum attended by hundreds of SEIU members from across the state. At that forum, SEIU members scored candidates based on their response to a series of questions on key working family issues. On Friday, 1199SEIU members with joined other SEIU members from Locals across the state to make a unified SEIU State Council endorsement of Martha Coakley.

At the Friday press conference, Coakley boldly declared that she will fight for healthcare workers. "I have a reputation for not backing down," she said of her record for standing up to big business interests and law violators. Coakley emphasized that 1199SEIU's support for her was so important because she knew the importance of having working class people supporting her.

"Members of SEIU play an essential role in Massachusetts' communities and I am proud to have their support," said Coakley. "With their help, we can improve the lives of working families across the Commonwealth and across the country."