Louisiana's early voting period runs from Saturday, September 25th through Saturday, October 5th (except September 29th), so you have the chance to vote now, in advance of election day on October 12th. This year's elections are incredibly important for Louisiana's future. Not only is the Governor up for re-election, but so is the entire Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE), as well as a number of important house and senate races.
This fall, Louisiana has the chance to #flipBESE!
As the presidential elections inch closer and the field of candidates gets more and more competitive, AFT members are engaging, parsing campaign platforms, asking questions of the candidates, and voicing their priorities as educators, healthcare practitioners and public employees. Thus far, the AFT has hosted eight AFT Votes town halls in eight different locations across the country, giving members the opportunity to meet candidates in person and hear about their stands on education, working families, healthcare and other top-line issues. Also part of the AFT’s robust endorsement process: surveys, debate parties and lots of information on AFTVotes.org.
LFT Endorsements
Louisiana Federation of Teachers and School Employees (LFT), has announced endorsements for the 2019 primary elections. 75 candidates have been selected from around the state who have each demonstrated their commitment to supporting public education issues which influence our schools, our teachers, and our students.
Hundreds of new educators join the LFT family.
Each electable BESE seat is subject to election this year, which means you will have a chance to vote for your BESE representative in October. Therefore, the Louisiana Federation of Teachers and the Louisiana Public School Coalition are hosting a series of candidate forums across the state.
And more!
Can you believe summer is almost over? Sometimes it can feel like things never slow down, but as we prepare for the back-to-school season to begin, here are some July highlight
“Teachers have always had power,” AFT President Randi Weingarten told the crowd at the TEACH opening plenary Thursday afternoon. “We need to own our power. And we need to build our power so we can move our agenda—for our students and our families; for safe, welcoming and well-funded public schools; for affordable higher education; healthcare that is a right, not a privilege; a living wage; a decent retirement; a healthy climate and a strong democracy.”
In AFT President Randi Weingarten’s latest column in the New York Times, she writes that, despite President Trump’s claims that we have the “best economy ever,” his policies are harming working and middle-class Americans, many of whom are struggling just to get by. “Our political and economic systems are so weighted toward the wealthy that opportunity will only come through the power of collective action,” she writes, using “the surest vehicles to increase opportunity for ordinary Americans”—public education, labor unions and voting. Read the full column.
