When local Machinists elected their new district president in mid-March, nearly every media source, including this one, labeled the outcome a “close vote.” (For more on the vote, http://www.heraldnet.com/stories/07/03/18/100bus_b1union001.cfm)
Roughly 600 votes separated the winner Tom Wroblewski from his opponent Clifton Wyatt. With 2,914 votes, Wroblewski captured 55.4 percent of the vote compared to Wyatt’s 2,346 votes, or 44.6 percent.
“To win by 10 percent, I think that’s a sizeable win,” Wroblewski said.
When I talked with former district president Mark Blondin a few weeks ago, I asked Blondin, who backed Wroblewski, about the vote. Blondin considers Wroblewski a sound successor, one with integrity and the ability to anticipate future problems.
However, the 600-vote spread did give Blondin a little cause for concern. With contract talks with Boeing next year, Blondin knows the importance of having the district’s members squarely behind their leader. In his first contract negotiation with Boeing, Blondin couldn’t convince enough Machinists to strike. Three years later, he had no problem gaining the members support.
Blondin hopes the Machinists will rally behind Wroblewski when needed. (For more on Blondin, http://www.heraldnet.com/stories/07/04/01/100loc_a1blondin001.cfm)
“I think he really needs to talk to the members, hear them out,” Blondin said. “The closer you get to the members, the more successful you’ll be.”
For his part, Wroblewski isn’t concerned about the vote.
“To win by 10 percent, I think that’s a sizeable win,” Wroblewski said.
It’s certainly a more sizeable win than the last two presidential races. Only 3 percent separated Pres. George Bush from rival John Kerry in 2004. Bush won by an even slimmer margin over Al Gore in 2000.
With that said, Wroblewski still doesn’t seem to be taking his chances. He plans to reach out to new, young members while keeping in touch with long time members.
“It’s all about servicing the membership,” Wroblewski said.
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