Just two quick things that I felt were significant about yesterday's vote count:
1. Based on a quick count it looks like only 13% of working teachers voted to re-elect the union's leadership. The overwhelming majority didn't vote. Of those that did, the roughly 65 or 70 percent (another quick count) who did vote represent a lower percentage than years past. A MORE member made the point last night that their base is eroding and I think I agree.
2. More retirees voted than did active teachers (retirees vote for Unity in really high numbers). Not only did leadership make sure their vote counted for a higher percentage this year, they were also able to turn out their vote like, well, like gangbusters.
The rumor is that even the Unity members who observed the vote count were embarrassed to see how the low turnout was.
Turnout was so low for in-service teachers, far lower than for retirees, far lower than New York rates for presidential elections.
ReplyDeleteNYC Eye blog has a revision with a table on turnout among the divisions.