That support, said Delaney, will include more than a financial contribution from the union. “We’re going to be in touch with every member and every retiree in the District. We’re going to let them know that Christine Cegelis understands how bankruptcy laws are protecting corporations and wiping out pensions. How Bush’s trade policies are forcing American workers into unemployment. And why we need to elect people to Congress who honestly and vigorously will represent the interests of American workers and families, like Christine Cegelis.”

James E. Brown, General Vice President of the IAM Midwest Region, was equally blunt. “We’re tired of middle-of-the-road, get-along, compromise kind of political decision-making in Washington.” He continued, “We need people who understand what’s happening to working families, and who have the courage and the ideas to change that. Christine is one of those people, and we’ll do everything we can to get her elected.”

Cegelis said the endorsement was “huge” in terms of the impact it will have on voters and voters’ understanding of the issues in the District. “They work here, they live here, and they understand the issues that affect this District,” said Cegelis. “This isn’t a symbolic or long-distance endorsement. It’s my friends and my neighbors and hard-working constituents who deserve better than they’ve been getting from the decision makers in Washington. I couldn’t be more proud. Or more encouraged by the faith they’ve placed in me.”