Whoo hoo! Big win for workers in Iowa!

Mathis win is victory for working people

Ohio was a huge victory for workers last night, but voters in Iowa also made history. In a special Senate election, Democrat Liz Mathis soundly defeated anti-worker Republican candidate Cindy Golding by a 56-44 margin. Mathis was all that stood between sanity and the Kochification of Iowa.

With Mathis's win, Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad’s anti-worker agenda will be kept in check by a 26-24 Democratic majority in the state Senate. Democrats will maintain this edge throughout the 2012 legislative session. Republicans had wanted a Golding win to maintain a 25-25 tie and move their anti-worker priorities and lower taxes on corporations.

Teamsters came out in full force to support pro-worker candidate Liz Mathis. Gary Dunham, secretary-treasurer of Teamsters Local 238 in Cedar Rapids, is thrilled this morning by the returns:

It was a huge, well-organized victory. We’ve been working hard from the time Liz announced she was running and we didn’t leave a stone unturned. Teamsters did mailings, door knockings, phone calls and worked together to get Mathis elected.

We worked really hard and never lost focus in educating folks on something that will affect their lives and their children’s lives. We were very fortunate to maintain the Senate and continue to fight hard to block any types of laws that would affect working people.

The message from Iowa, Maine and Ohio is clear: When you stand up and fight for the middle class, you win.