November 2, 2020
“It Ain’t Over ‘til it’s Over”
Saturday morning my wife Alice and I were driving south on Woodward in Royal Oak and right there in the parking lot of the now closed Pasquale’s restaurant was a Trump rally–signs, flags, banners, MAGA hats and more. Saturday and Sunday, we plugged into the Michigan AFL-CIO election program and did literature drops in Macomb County. In portions of Clinton Township, Trump lawn signs and flags adorn far, far too many homes. Overall, the polls and early voting look good for Biden/Harris, but as Yogi Berra once said, “it ain’t over til it’s over.” Never, ever forget losing Michigan by 11,000 votes in 2016.
Chances are good the election results will not be final Tuesday night. With the large number of early voters it will take a few more days to make sure every vote is counted, and counting every vote is the foundation of our democracy.
Because he knows he’s losing, Trump will pull out every trick in the book to win the election even after Election Day. He has all but promised it. We are working with all of labor and many progressive groups to send a loud and clear message that every vote must be counted. Beginning on November 4th, there will be actions hosted by local groups across the state. You can see a full list of public actions here: We Make Michigan: Count Every Vote.
Thank you for voting, thank you for making calls, texting, using facebook, talking with co-workers, friends and family about the importance of this election and why we must send Vice President Joe Biden and Senator Kamala Harris to the White House, re-elect Senator Gary Peters, and elect all of our endorsed candidates.
Final GOTV Activities
Feeling that sense of nervousness that can only be calmed by making sure you did what you could this election cycle? There’s still some very concrete things you can do Tuesday:
- Call other educators from home. Click here to get the details and sign up for a time that works for you.
- If you’re comfortable knocking doors, there’s canvassing statewide with One Campaign for Michigan
- Drop off lit at houses with the AFL-CIO (just show up at one of the following UAW halls):
- Macomb: UAW Region 1, 27800 George Merrelli Dr, Warren, MI 48092
- W. Wayne: UAW Region 1A, 9650 Telegraph Rd, Taylor, MI 48180
- Detroit: UAW Vote Center, 15140 Livernois, Detroit, MI 48238
- Lansing: UAW Local 602, 2510 W Michigan Ave, Lansing, MI 48917
- Flint: UAW Local 659, 4549 Van Slyke Rd, Flint, MI 48507
- If you run into problems voting or see something at the polls that doesn’t look right, call: 866-OUR-VOTE to talk to a nonpartisan election protection worker.
Join Us for an Election Night Party Watch Party
We will likely not know the winner on election night, but we can still gather to celebrate all of the hard work done this election cycle and be a little bit less nervous watching the early returns together:
- We are hosting an AFT Michigan virtual watch party on Zoom, starting at 8:30pm. RSVP at: https://bit.ly/3jUSvXX
- Progress Michigan is hosting a fun, socially-distanced, outdoor election night event in Novi at 8 p.m. to watch returns come in from Michigan and around the country on a giant screen! Special guests may make appearances and food and drinks will be available via food trucks following COVID-19 guidelines. To RSVP, please go to the following link: https://bit.ly/2HEJTrk
In solidarity,
David Hecker, President
