AUGUSTA — A union representing electrical workers in Maine is urging the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee to stop promoting Gov. Janet Mills over oyster farmer Graham Platner in the U.S. Senate primary.
“Your committee’s support for Janet Mills is troubling to our membership for several reasons,” Michael Monahan, internation vice-president for the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, wrote. “First and foremost, the party establishment should not be investing resources in candidates whose record with labor is fraught.”
Monahan did not cite specific examples, but in recent months, unions negotiating with the state over contracts have filed unfair labor practice notices against the Mills administration.
In a November filing by the Maine Service Employees Association, the union alleged that the administration prematurely declared that negotiations were at an impasse, that it canceled bargaining sessions, and it took other actions to “frustrate the collective bargaining process.”
In response, the Department of Administrative and Financial Services said it disputed the claims made by MSEA and that the state has been responsive to the union’s call for pay increases. Those increases totaled “a 24% average wage increase across state government,” according to the administration.
Mills’ campaign spokesman Tommy Garcia said the governor has a long record of fighting for working people.
“Governor Mills’ record of fighting for workers’ rights, dignity and pay has earned her praise from many unions throughout the state of Maine,” he said. “She has made clear she will continue fighting for working people in the Senate to lower costs, protect jobs, and improve our economy — and given she is the only candidate in this race who has negotiated and signed legislation that delivers real progress, Maine voters know she will continue to deliver for them.”
The Feb. 23 letter from the IBEW also referenced what Monahan described as the “political reality in Maine.”
Recent polling shows Platner, a combat veteran from Sullivan, leading Mills, a two-term governor and former attorney general. The most recent numbers from Pan Atlantic have Platner at 46% to Mills at 39%, with a 3.7% margin of error.
Both are working to win the June Democratic primary for the right to face Republican Sen. Susan Collins, who is seeking a sixth term. The poll released last week showed Platner ahead of Collins 44% to 40%, while Mills and Collins tied with 44% support.
“Public polling shows Graham Platner opening a decisive lead in the primary, and his fundraising strength continues to grow,” Monahan wrote in the letter. “He is resonating with voters, building a broad coalition and demonstrating the momentum necessary to win both the nomination and the general election.”
The DSCC did not respond to a request for comment.
On its website, the campaign arm for Senate Democrats describes Mills as “the only Democrat to have won statewide in Maine in the last 20 years” and noted she has “consistently overperformed other Democrats in dense areas, suburbs, and rural communities.”
At the end of his letter, Monahan said that labor organizations “contribute significantly” to Democratic campaigns. He said the union wants to see the DSCC “cease all involvement in the primary.”
“Allow Maine Democrats — including the thousands of union members who make up the backbone of our party — to choose their nominee without interference,” he wrote.
The primary is June 9.