SEIU launches largest field campaign in union’s history for 2012 election

The Service Employee’s International Union (SEIU), the nation’s fastest growing union with 2.1 million members, today is launching the largest and most-targeted political field campaign in the union’s 91-year history to re-elect President Obama and win other key elections in eight battleground states, including Virginia.

The union will target union and non-union members on an unprecedented scale. By Election Day, the SEIU field campaign intends to connect with voters by making 13 million phone calls, knocking on more than 3 million doors and holding more than 1 million conversations in Colorado, Florida, Nevada, New Hampshire, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Wisconsin.

Beginning this week, SEIU members will take time off their jobs to become member political organizers (MPOs) who will reach out to fellow union members as well as the general public with a specific focus on African Americans, Latinos and youth voters. Over the coming months, more than 700 SEIU members will become MPOs. The field program also includes a robust volunteer recruitment program with more than 100,000 members volunteering to help reelect President Obama.

In Virginia, the field campaign is designed to have more than 20,000 in-depth conversations with key voters by Election Day along with knocking on 67,000 doors and making tens of thousands of phone calls. There will be about 75 MPOs based in Northern Virginia and Tidewater, who will voters across the state by working with community partners to elect candidates up and down the ballot that will put hard working families first.

“Our boots-on-the-ground effort will be big, bold and targeted,” said Eliseo Medina, SEIU international secretary treasurer. “Far too much is at stake for working people this election cycle. We are using our human and capital resources to give working people a voice and stand by candidates who will stand up for working people and not return the country to failed policies of the past.”

The field campaign is part of SEIU’s broad political program, which includes aggressive paid and volunteer GOTV efforts; large-scale civic engagement initiatives with community partners in the African American and Latino communities; major paid media campaigns; and coordinated voter education and protection program to inform people of their voting rights. The political program’s goal is to elect candidates who support working people–the 99 percent agenda–and will work to create good jobs here at home, rebuild an economy where everyone pays their fair share and invest in healthcare and other services for those in need.