A union is asking Minnesota teachers to spend their two days away from the classroom across state lines, canvassing for Vice President Kamala Harris and U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin.
The St. Paul Federation of Educators (SPFE) recently sent an email calling for volunteers to participate in door-knocking efforts in western Wisconsin this weekend to urge residents to vote for the Democratic candidates.
St. Paul union emphasizes importance of Wisconsin race
“Wisconsin is a must-win for Harris-Walz,” the email read. “It is also critical to Tammy Baldwin in the U.S. Senate, so that [she] can give soon-to-be President Harris the support she will need to roll back horrible authoritarian attacks on the BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ communities, women’s reproductive freedom, more importantly, lay the groundwork to take the big wins we have had in Minnesota nationwide.”
The canvassing event is scheduled for Oct. 5 and 6 in areas such as Hudson, River Falls and Menomonie, with SPFE providing housing, meals, snacks, and training to volunteers.
A teacher who asked to remain anonymous told Alpha News they have never seen such an overt political effort from the union. The teacher described COPE (the union’s Committee on Political Education) as a “leftist political slush fund.”
“The brazen political overtones of the email shocked me,” the teacher said. “I have never seen an email from this union trying to drum up so many people to travel to another state and do overt political work on Democrats’ behalf.”
The email was signed by Lynne Bolton, political organizer for the Saint Paul Federation of Educators, who concluded with the message, “In solidarity and defiance.”
In a separate email to union members, SPFE lead organizer Caitlin Reid promoted the canvassing event and warned that “authoritarians are relying on us to stay home.”
“Just as we turned out in record numbers in the last two elections, we must join together to remove them from and keep them out of power,” she said.
The union includes similar language on its website, where it warns that the Heritage Foundation’s “Project 2025” would give “corporations more control over our families” and allow “discrimination based on our races, genders, and origins.”
“In addition to the Presidential Election, in Minnesota we have a Trifecta to protect. Americans, across race, place and party value our freedoms. But authoritarians in office, on courts and in the media want to take away freedom from all who do not look and live like them,” the website says.
Neither Bolton or the Saint Paul Federation of Educators responded to requests for comment.
Jenna Gloeb
Jenna Gloeb is an Edward R. Murrow Award-winning journalist, media producer, public speaker, and screenwriter. Most recently, she worked as a reporter and on-air host for CCX Media. Jenna is a Minnesota native and resides in the Twin Cities with her husband, son, daughter, and two dogs.
