15 Under-the-Radar Progressive Wins of Election 2013
New York City: Not only did Bill de Blasio win on a platform of reducing inequality and halting NYPD’s controversial ‘stop-and-frisk’ program, he’ll also govern with a more progressive city council, as the 21 new members of the 51-seat body are expected to double the council’s progressive caucus after aggressive campaigning by labor groups and the Working Families Party.
Sea-Tac: An aggressive campaign by business interests wasn’t enough to defeat a $15 per hour living wage ordinance for transportation workers at Seattle’s airport and residents of the surrounding community.
Whatcom County, Wash.: In a victory for the environmental movement, progressives seem to have swept Whatcom County council elections in a race that was widely seen as a referendum on a proposed new coal port terminal. (National Journal called this race “an obscure county election that could change the planet.”)
Takoma Park, Md.: It wasn’t an election victory per se, but it’s always good to see the franchise expanded and yesterday 16 year-olds voted for the first time in this city’s local elections.
Colorado: Three out of four Colorado cities with anti-fracking ordinances on the ballot passed them. Centennial State voters also voted in two new taxes on legal marijuana, strengthening the measure enacted last year.
Boulder, Colo.: In a landslide, residents of this Colorado town voted to buy out energy giant Xcel Corporation and implement a long-term energy plan that relies heavily on renewables.
Bridgeport, Connecticut: The state’s Working Families Party drubbed corporate “reformers” in the city’s hotly contested school board elections.
Other mayoral races: Left-leaning candidates won mayoral races in Charlotte, N.C., and Dayton, Ohio. Houston, Texas re-elected its first out-lesbian mayor.
Phoenix City Council: If the unofficial results hold up, Phoenix will have the first-ever progressive majority on its city council.
Coralville, Iowa: The Koch brothers’ American for Prosperity tried to make a local election in tiny Coralville, Iowa a referendum on government spending but their candidates were defeated by this town of 19,000.
Royal Oak, Mich.: Becomes the 30th municipality in the state to bar discrimination against LGBT-Americans by upholding a human rights ordinance which passed this spring but was challenged by conservative activists.
Missoula, Mont.: Six of the city’s 12 council seats were up for grabs, and liberals swept them, thanks in large part to the efforts of the New Party, which was a precursor of sorts to the Working Families Party.
http://billmoyers.com/2013/11/06/15-under-the-radar-progressive-wins-of-election-2013/
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