Working Families Party

The Working Families Party (WFP) is a left-wing-progressive minor political party in the US state of New York, which has now expanded efforts into a number of other states, including the creation of the Connecticut Working Families Party and organizing projects in a number of other states.

Related Topics:
Left-wing - Progressive - Minor - Political party - US - New York

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New York's Working Families Party was first organized in 1998 by a coalition of labor unions, ACORN and other community organizations, members of the now-inactive national New Party, and a variety of public interest groups. The party blends a culture of political organizing with unionism, 1960s idealism, and realistic tactical pragmatism. The party has advocated issues ranging from middle-class, good-government reforms like a clean judiciary, to economic justice issues like raising the minimum wage.

Related Topics:
1998 - Labor union - ACORN - Community organizations - New Party - Unionism - 1960s - Middle-class - Judiciary - Economic justice - Minimum wage

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In the 2002 election for governor of New York, the party cross-endorsed the Democratic Party candidate, Carl McCall. Because he received more than 50,000 votes on the WFP line, the party gained an automatic ballot line for the succeeding four years. In the same election, the Liberal Party and the Green Party, each running its own candidate, failed to reach that threshold and lost the ballot lines they had previously won. This left the WFP as the only left-progressive minor party with a ballot line. One slogan of the Working Families Party is "The minor party with major possibilities."

Related Topics:
2002 - Governor - Cross-endorsed - Democratic Party - Carl McCall - Ballot - Liberal Party - Green Party

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As of 2005, the executive director of the WFP is Dan Cantor. Mr. Cantor and Bob Master, the party's co-chairman and a leader of the Communications Workers of America, are old friends. At 12 years old they were studying for their Bar Mitzvahs at the same Reform synagogue on Long Island. The WFP also has a powerful alliance with Dennis Rivera and Local 1199/SEIU (Service Employees International Union). The intensely activist union is known to contribute more than $100,000 a year of the party's $1.4 million annual budget.

Related Topics:
As of 2005 - Dan Cantor - Bob Master - Communications Workers of America - Bar Mitzvah - Reform synagogue - Long Island - Dennis Rivera - Service Employees International Union

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