Working Families Party

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Working Families Party...

Contents 1 History 2 Communist Party support 3 DSA involvement 4 Officers 5 Alleged Corruption 6 References

History

The New york based Working Families Party won a ballot line in 1998 after garnering just over 50,000 votes for governor.

In the 2002 race for governor, the WFP nominated state comptroller Carl McCall – the first African-American to seek that office – who easily won the Democratic Party primary after rival Andrew Cuomo virtually withdrew.

This time the party got 90,500 votes in the general election.

While WFP officials adhere to the technicalities of election law in placing candidates on the ballot, substantive decisions are determined by weighted votes of a coalition^[1] consisting of twenty unions, ACORN, Citizen Action, Democratic Socialists of America, the Long Island Progressive Coalition, and local WFP clubs. This organization screens candidates and makes recommendations based on the candidates’ positions on living wages, health care for all, fair taxation, and similar issues. The WFP has provided the margin of victory in Assembly, state Senate, and congressional elections.

Communist Party support

During the 2004 election cycle, the Communist Party USA was very supportive of the Working Families Party and their endorsed Congressional candidate Frank Barbaro.

The newly emerging Working Families Party and its fusion strategy, which negates the issue of spoiler, deserves special attention. The Working Families Party in New York is building a beautiful working class multi-racial base. In New York their local campaigns are being carried out in the context of defeating Bush, and also electing a long-time progressive, Frank Barbaro to Congress in a district that has been represented by a Republican. The efforts of the Working Families Party to expand into more states deserve full support.

DSA involvement

Democratic Socialists of America is heavily involved in the Working Families Farty.

According to DSA's Democratic Left Summer 2001^[2];

Veterans of the left will remember that the 1968 Peace and Freedom Party and the 1980 Citizens Party arose at moments of greater left-wing strength and did not significantly alter the national electoral landscape. Nor has, unfortunately, the New Party, which many DSAers work with in states where “fusion” of third party and major party votes is possible (such as the DSA co-sponsored Working Families Party in N.Y. State).

Many DSA members^[3]have registered in the Working Families Party, including former Ithaca Mayor Ben Nichols, who chairs the WFP in the 125th Assembly District.

Many more New York DSAers are active in WFP leadership and club organizations.

The DSA youth wing, Young Democratic Socialists' 2004 "Life After Bush" Conference included^[4];

A series of well-attended workshops detailed the nuts-and-bolts of electoral activism, lead by veteran campaigners from trade unions and the NY DSA-affiliated fusion Working Families Party.

Officers

Working Families Party officers include^[5];

• Jon Kest, who runs day-to-day operations for ACORN is the WFP secretary.
• Bertha Lewis, a WFP co-chair and the executive director of ACORN’s New York offices.
• Bob Master, who serves as party co-chair and the political director of the Communications Workers of America.
• Mike McGuire, resigned as WFP treasurer in August 2009.
• Dorothy Siegel, replacement Treasurer. Siegel is the chair of the Working Families Party South Brooklyn Club and is already the treasurer of the Working Families Organization, one of the many additional affiliates of the WFP. Siegel is employed at the Institute for Education and Social Policy at New York University.
• Sam Williams.

In 2009 Non-voting assistant secretaries were;

• Alex Rabb, WFP staffer.
• Dan Cantor, WFP executive director and co-chair .

WFP spokesman is Dan Levitan.

Kevin Finnegan, is a Local 1199 political director who is also the lawyer who set up Data and Field Services, the WFP affiliated private company.

Alleged Corruption

On July 12, 2010, Brooklyn resident Patrick Crooks, a former employee of the Working Families Party stated that he was so disturbed by the organization’s practices that he walked out after only one week on the job (June 28 - July 5). He stated that the following incidents took place:^[6]

• He was encouraged by superiors to falsify signatures and addresses on petitions supporting the left-wing party’s push to repeal a state law that took rent regulation out of the city’s hands and gave it to the state
• Being misled about the type of work he was hired to perform — fund-raising and canvassing instead of policy work;
• Getting a paycheck from the party’s former political arm, Data and Field Services, although the job posting he responded to was for the WFP, and
• Receiving instruction to collect money and signatures in buildings that had “no trespassing” signs and only leave if forced out by police.

Mike Boland, executive director of DFS stated that Crooks had been strictly prohibited from entering residences uninvited or faking any documents. He said that Crooks had been dismissed because he was not qualified for the job. A WFP source stated that some canvassers had in fact put their own names down first to give the appearance of more support.

At the time of the alleged incidents, both DFS and WFP were under federal and city Campaign Finance Board investigations.

References