TRENTON – The re-election of President Barack Obama, Senator Robert Menendez, and the election of the New Jersey State AFL-CIO’s endorsed Congressional candidates marks a significant victory for working families in New Jersey and across the nation. We greatly commend the emergency service workers, police officers, firefighters, nurses, county and state workers, transit workers, and election officials and volunteers, whose efforts were critical to making this election possible.

“As we rebuild our state from this storm, we must also continue to move forward as a nation. The 2012 election was more than just a choice between candidates, it was a choice between two directions for our nation, and working families chose to move forward.” stated New Jersey State AFL-CIO President Charles Wowkanech. “The results of this election confirm the conviction of working families to preserve collective bargaining rights, Medicare, Social Security, social justice, and equal economic opportunity for all.”

Through the New Jersey State AFL-CIO Labor Candidates Program, 36 rank-and-file union members won elections to public office in this election – an 88% win ratio. This brings the total number of labor candidate election victories to 728. This marks a significant milestone for the program and the best victory percentage in the program’s 15 year history.

In addition, voters overwhelmingly approved Ballot Question #1 which authorizes the construction of state-of-the-art facilities at our state’s higher education institutions, creating nearly 10,000 jobs, spurring economic growth, and investing in educational opportunities for students.

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