Upstate, NY - Members of 1199SEIU, the New York State AFL-CIO, and WNY Area Labor Federation, AFL-CIO from WNY and Rochester boarded buses and vans to Erie, Pennsylvania today to get out the vote for Kamala Harris & Tim Walz and the rain did not deter them.  

1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East members endorsed Kamala Harris for President.   With 450,000 members across the East Coast, 1199SEIU’s endorsement comes with a massive voter turnout and member engagement operation, ready to hit the streets to get out the vote to advance the most pro-worker agenda in US history. 

Today, healthcare workers and labor union members from across Upstate traveled to Pennsylvania and New Hampshire to help get out the vote for their endorsed candidate. Western New York and Rochester healthcare workers boarded buses and vans alongside the New York State AFL-CIO, and WNY Area Labor Federation union members bright and early this morning.  Union members spent the afternoon knocking doors and talking to Pennsylvania laborers about the critical importance of this election.  

“The stakes of this election for workers’ livelihoods and for our basic freedoms could not be higher, which is why 1199SEIU caregivers across New York are involved in an unprecedented voter outreach effort,” said Milly Silva, Secretary-Treasurer of 1199SEIU. 

“Working people will defeat the billionaire and corporate interests which seek to divide us.  By securing victory for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz, we will usher in a new era for workers’ rights, restore our freedoms and defend civil liberties, and create a more equitable and prosperous nation for all.  Kamala Harris has a proven record of standing up for working people and helping lead the most pro-labor administration in history,” said Mario Cilento, President of the New York State AFL-CIO.  As evidenced by this bus trip, we are literally pulling out all the stops to ensure her victory. We know that union members connecting with one another is the most effective way to educate and mobilize working people to vote. Pennsylvania is a crucial battleground state, and having our members actively engaged on the ground can make a difference," said Cilento.  

"From town boards to the White House, union members know that our families and communities do better when we have allies that understand the issues of working people and are ready to fight for economic and social justice in all its forms," said Peter De Jesus Jr., President of the Western New York Area Labor Federation, AFL-CIO.  "That's why we're mobilizing across state lines for candidates who support and defend workers' rights, are building an economy that's fair for working families, and will secure pensions and Social Security for generations of retirees to come. We know everything is at stake for our members and their families. By Election Day, we're going to proudly know we did everything possible to elect Kamala Harris and Tim Walz—to be the change we want to see in our communities and in our country,” said De Jesus, Jr.