The Friday Night Unity Purge/Massacre: Rally for Leah and Ashley @Queens UFT HQ at 6PM Today

Tuesday, July 22, 2025 - Queens UFT - 118-35 Queens Boulevard 7th Floor Forest Hills, NY 11375

I'm heading out soon to the Queens UFT office for the 6 PM rally - they say get there at 5:30  to defend fired District rep Ashley Rzonca, sponsored by the District 30 Community Education Council, a parent group, not an insignificant factor. And as I pointed out in my post yesterday _ UFT DA Tidbits - Endorsing Mamdani, ABC and ARISE/...  she is also getting support from a number of D. 30 CL and UFT members. Firing her over perceived disloyalty and friendship with the fired Amy Arundell, her former boss at the Queens office.

- I'm taking a new route as I hate to drive more and more despite my new car. I will drive to Howard Beach station to get the Airtrain to JFK and then transfer to the one to Jamaica where I will pick up the E to the UFT. 

Click on the link to Talk out of School to hear interviews.

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/talk-out-of-school/id1490313171?i=1000718209710  

The D. 30 CL and Delegate protest at the July 9th DA Mamdani endorsement was not insignificant.  

Ashley Rzonca speech at CEC 30 meeting.  

Everyone knows Amy revitalized that office when Mulgrew moved her out of 52 almost 10 years ago. At that time I saw that as indicating some differences between them - even though it came with a big raise, getting her out of the center of action. She built a loyal following until she was removed in late 2023, but those relationships came home to roost in helping build the A Better Contract (ABC) and its subsequent relative election success. 

I had heard from a Unity source months before the firing that Ashley was in trouble due to connections to some of the CLs in D 30 who ran with or supported ABC, which was due to the Amy connection. 

Yet Ashley was appointed to the recent UFT election committee as one of the "thousands" of Unity reps on that committee, ran, and was elected, on the Unity slate for the UFT Exec Bd and as an AFT/NYSUT delegate for the next 3 years. 

It will certainly be interesting to see what Ashley does - will she take on the role of the missing opposition, along with fired para Hector Ruiz, Jr. who was also elected to the Exec Bd and AFT/NYSUT? A third fired official (who has asked to remain nameless) was also elected to AFT/NYSUT. (Para Migda Rodriguez, who ran with ABC and is an elected Para officer, was also fired -- I will address the fired paras in a separate post.) 

What does it mean that 3 of the 6 fired were chosen to run with Unity back in February yet fired in June? Did they not hand out Unity flyers with enough vigor? Or did vote totals in District 30 have anything to do with it? The big jump in elementary school votes for ABC might have been a factor since many probably came from D. 30. I asked for school vote totals when I was on the election committee but Unity rejected that request, opting for district reports. The president of GES told me he had that data -- did Unity get that data but deny the rest of us - and examined it and found something in the D. 30 results?  

Even though I was on the election committee with Ashley, I had my first conversation with her on July 9th after the DA and was impressed by her passion and smarts. I have to be honest - I used to view District reps, and indeed, the general Unity crowd as being sycophants and some real slugs. Having contact with a bunch of Unity disaffected has opened my eyes to see Unity people in a new light. I bet there are plenty more of them - some have even been in contact sub rosa. (Let Mulgrew start looking under the hood with a flashlight.)

There's a petition campaign: http/bit.ly/reinstateashleyrzonca 

I'd call for them to have an election. 

There are DR slugs of course, but Rzonca has an impeccable reputation and if an election were held would win hands down. I don't envy her successor. In fact, if she goes over to ABC, I'd bet a bunch of CLs and members in Dist. 30 would come along with her. I know of some who did not run with ABC but were a big help with petitioning - dynamos that will be a force if active in ABC.

Amongst Amy's and Ashley's admirers is CL Leah Linn, who Amy had hired as a PM staffer. Leah ran with ABC as an officer and was fired soon after the election was over. Leah has helped lead the resistance. I never met Leah until this past February and became increasingly impressed with her leadership skills and her smarts. 

Leah as a CL in Ashley's D. 30 and her defection to ABC is probably one reason Rzonca was fired. Did she fail to use the Unity Caucus whip and threaten Leah for running?

 

Summary:

 

The Friday June 27th purge was a cleansing by Unity Caucus of its perceived dis-loyalists. Mulgrew and crew, when faced with waning popularity, instead of trying to fix it, they resorted to fear tactics to try to cow potential internal opposition into silence and obedience, but has resulted in lots of loathing. 

 

Fear tactics might work for some but over time these tactics alienate people in the club, even if they remain on the job. From all reports, Mulgrew has created a toxic environment inside the union and this only exasperates that toxicity. The attacks on Amy, going back years, brought enough people into ABC to make it a viable opposition. 

 

If anyone in Unity didn't notice the drop to 53% and the energized ABC campaign infused with Unity refugees, that are fooling themselves. Repression and fear-mongering engenders resistance or a cleansing-- I won't use a banned word for cleansing in Arabic.

 

While in the long run, union staffers having a union and due process rights seems like a good idea, there are also complications in that idea. Shouldn't the party in power be able to hire the people they want? That was the argument made by Unity when they killed district rep elections in 2002. But that's the argument principals make, so no dice. District reps are a special kettle of fish. They used to be elected by chapter leaders for decades before the change and the union was better off for it. If ABC had won we would have moved immediately to hold DR elections. 

 

So the firing of district 30 rep Ashley Rzonca, who ran and won election to the Exec Bd and AFT/NYSUT rep on the Unity slate, is  unfair - based on "perceived" disloyalty and not cancelling Amy, her former mentor and boss -- this is where Unity crossed the line. Did Rzonca fail to stuff enough mailboxes with Unity glossy election leaflets? Were the vote totals for D. 30 too low? Were the ABC elementary totals too high? 

 

====

See: The Purge: When Standing Up Gets You Removed

By Katie Anskat

 

Comment from a D 30 CL 

Being a union member, and in my case a Chapter Leader, we are taught how to navigate the inner workings of toxic administration. We are told to document, to stand our ground and when the time comes, we are taught to come together and make our voices heard. We are told to have union representation when we are called into meetings with administration in order to protect ourselves. Our District 30 Representative, Ashley Rzonca helped us to build these tools to ensure that we maintain a safe work environment where we are free of bullying and harassment. 

 

We’ve trusted our union to stand by the values that give our collective its strength and purpose, but it’s become painfully clear that the UFT has abandoned those values.

Ashley Rzonca was called into a meeting where she was told she would meet with UFT leadership. Instead, she was met by Human Resources. She was lied to. 

 

Ashley Rzonca asked if she needed to bring anything or anyone to the meeting with her and she was told it wasn’t necessary. She was deceived. 

 

Ashley Rzonca was asked not to return to her position at the UFT. When she asked why this was happening or if it had to do with her job performance, she was told they were “unprepared” to answer those questions. This is unacceptable.

 

Ashley Rzonca reached out to report harassment in her workplace and instead of being supported, she was terminated. This is retaliation. 

 

If this exact scenario were happening in a school building with a UFT member and a principal, we would immediately call it what it is: retaliation and an abuse of power. If a member met with administration to ask why they were being discontinued and the answer was “we are unprepared”, we would be up in arms about ineffective administration. We would be advocating for this member to remain in their role and demand accountability. Why should this be any different? 

 

The UFT can not give us the tools to push back against ineffective leadership and expect us to stay silent as it unjustly terminates a dedicated unionist who has served with integrity and excellence in her leadership role. Ashley Rzonca’s termination is not only unwarranted, it is a betrayal of the values we hold dear in our union. 

 

I am demanding that Ashley Rzonca be reinstated to her position as District 30 Representative. 

 

I will not stand by. I will not be silent. I will speak out and demand immediate action. Our union is only as strong as our willingness to defend what’s right.

UFT DA Tidbits - Endorsing Mamdani, ABC and ARISE/Unity Reactions Differ, District 30 CLs Protest Firings

Sunday, July 20, 2025 

I started writing this on July 9th, the day after the special endorsement delegate assembly and nice weather and wasting lots of time watching TV at night led to avoidance. Plus others kept writing on the issue and I kept adding links to the point this has become a mess. I will not be deterred. For those intrepid souls willing to wade through this, I offer, up front, a few key takeaways while I put most of what I've been writing on hold for a follow-up. 

I am struck, though not surprised, at the very different reactions of the ABC crew compared to the effusive praise coming from both the Unity and the ARISE coalition members (MORE, Retiree Advocate Organizers, New Action). 

Unity people fall in line. If Mulgrew had endorsed Cuomo you would see the same level of effusivity. If he endorsed Adams, the same. Nosferatu? Hell Yes.

ARISE coalition members adhere to ideology over process (and democracy). People from the ARISE coalition groups supported Mamdani all the way and are extremely excited to see their fave endorsed by the UFT. Let's point out that Unity, MORE, New Action and Retiree Advocate are all legacy caucuses and if you don't support the basic ideology of the caucus (as I often have not) you are made to feel extremely uncomfortable - as I have been made to feel within the dozen member RA Organizing committee, which has operated on consensus, except when it doesn't.

The 3 oppo legacy caucuses echoed their UFT election misjudgements and jumped to support a bad process because of their caucus' support for a particular candidate who comes close to their groups' ideological favorite. 

A MORE tweet bragged: This is what a real Delegate Assembly looks like -- and posted this graphic  

The delegate red area included almost every officer in the room getting to speak plus assorted other Unity stalwarts. But the first speaker on the phone just happened to be a prominent MORE and ARISE and Mulgrew made sure to call on the co-chairman of New Action -- shades of bipartisanship.

The entire charade was "caucus member driven", not rank and file member driven.  

I'm sure MORE and New Action did not have time to take a vote of their members. MORE didn't have to.  It would be very unlikely to be in MORE and not be for Mamdani. No zionists left there. What about New Action? Their co-chair spoke for Mamdani at the DA but not for the caucus. As far as I know NAC did not formally endorse. But when it comes to RA, which is almost half made up of NAC, it did endorse. That is problematical since there were 300 people elected with RA and were not consulted. Only the 12 member RA Organizers (a steering committee of sorts) endorsed. I was the lone voice of opposition and while I personally support Mamdani, I objected to branding RA in this manner by ignoring voice of RA supporters, many of whom are concerned about confusion around Mamdani's support for the retiree struggle.

ABC does not view itself as a caucus with a firm set of beliefs one has to adhere to in order to "join." Actually there is no "joining". Anyone, no matter where they stand - within reason of course, is welcome under the idea of "leave your personal politics at the door", which came under much criticism from ARISEers. So while many ABCer affiliated support Mamdani, some do not. ABC believes in a big tent, which seems to enrage some ARISEers who turn up their noses at mingling with what they consider "deplorables". Imagine if ABC tried to engage in an endorsement process --- oy! 

So that is how ABC looked at the UFT endorsement process on such quick notice without internal discussion -- 

At the July 8 emergency DA I handed out this leaflet from ABC, making the point that I personally supported Mamdani:

• The UFT’s Endorsement Process Is Broken:  We need a member-led process with transparency, healthy debate, and accountability. We stand on our platform position that members should vote for major political endorsements. Creating a transparent, member-led endorsement process

 ABC made this prediction and it came true:

There may be some scripted debate. A rushed vote. But the outcome is already decided. And this outcome has the potential to damage our solidarity. This is not a democratic process. It’s a performance. And it’s insulting.

 One ABCer, a Mamdani supporter, did get a comment in at the DA and pointed out he would like time to get input from the staff at his school that elected him - and urged a delay until September to try to engage people and build support -- give some scrutiny to the awful alternatives and time to counter some of the ridiculous attacks like free buses (but not free Staten Island ferry) is socialistic.

Cheering the 63% vote at the DA is a false flag as to where the members stand. For all we know a majority may be against and how does that play out in the context of the UFT endorsement - often a kiss of death to a candidate? Some have been pulling COPE in response. Double OY!!

Revolt in District 30 (Astoria and Jackson Hts): 

Oh, and don't forget the not insignificant revolt from District 30 over the firing of their district rep. 

While attention was focused on the Mamdani endorsement, another significant event occurred at the July 8th DA when CL and Del from District 30 (Astoria and Jackson Hts) protested the firing of Ashley Rzonca, their District Rep.  Was she viewed as too friendly with Amy? Others were fired for what looks like similar reasons. Mulgrew's crackdown is in line with other dictators who instead of reading the tea leaves  - 54% Unity vote - Unity defectors being a significant factor-  and redressing the issues, Mulgrew has doubled down, using fear which leads to loathing. Consider the District 30 firing a major unforced error. I pity the district rep they put in her place.

If you are free Tuesday, come on down: 

 

 

Ashley Rzonca speech at CEC 30 meeting:

 

See a video of protest.

 

 

 

District 30 Delegates Protest Firing of Dist Rep

 

CL Leah Lin Raises Point of Personal Privilege over firing of D. Rep Ashley Rzonca

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mulgrew had her mic turned off. 

 

Leah Lin video. I have to talk some more about the growth of Leah as a leader over the past 6 months - but not today.

 

Friendship with Amy led to Firings.  Coming soon to Unity Caucus?  Polygraphs to test loyalty.

More Leah Lin:

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DL5mtkESWKk/?igsh=MTJ0ODJqN2ZtdzY5Nw%3D%3D    

 

Today's DA and Yesterday Town Hall -- Ode to Hot Air Mike: President of Piffle, Sultan of Spin, Lord of the Loophole

Tuesday, July 8 -- a day I have to leave the beach and shlep into Manhattan for the DA.

Today is an emergency Del Ass to endorse a mayoral candidate and there is some speculation of some kind of deal between Mulgrew and Mamdani. Remember the Unity attack on DSA? I posted about this possible endorsement last week and speculated about how the UFT kiss of death may cause Mamdani to lose. 

• Will UFT Endorse Mamdani after their attacks on DSA? Will that be his kiss of death? Would Cuomo/Adams Odds Rise?

The orthodox Jewish group, which boycotted voting for ABC or ARISE because of Amy and MORE sympathy for Palestinians and chose Unity, is certainly not happy. They put out a statement somewhere but I can't find it.

 

ABetterContract.org put this out yesterday: 

Jul 07, 2025

We need a member-led process with transparency, healthy debate, and accountability. We stand on our platform position that members should vote for major political endorsements.This is not a democratic process. It’s a performance. And it’s insulting.... 

The UFT’s Endorsement Process Is Broken: 

 

ABC who show up are going out after so why not jump on the ferry? 

 

I missed most of the retiree town hall yesterday because I didn't get the time right and logged on around 3:25 and by 3:35, it clearly ran out of steam. Some focus on the stuck para bill. I give Unity credit -- pushing a campaign for 10k para bonus worked to drain potential para votes from ABC -- our chance to win would have required a big para turnout for ABC. But that gambit won't work again. I compare the success of the Mamdani campaign to pull out new voters. And that was the same idea of the ABC campaign - not to rely on the usual suspects from legacy caucuses, which have shown no real growth over decades of so-called organizing. Their 14% was even worse than the Cuomo campaign. We can all learn from Mamdani -- and a key is people in the schools. ABC ran 520 out of the 560 who ran with us in schools while ARISE ran around 350 in school people plus 140 retirees. My advice to ABC is to start asap to build an even firmer base, not just for elections but to become a constant force in the UFT. Recent firings by Unity will help in that effort, as I will point out in an upcoming post on the Unity purges.

 

Some comments on the town hall related to the stalled para bill.

He’s right this had to do with politics. Him wanting to get re-elected and him willing lie to get votes.

 

Everyone else’s fault.

 

Politics got involved in a bill??? Dumb. 

 

He comes up with the hair brained idea. Tells the paras it is as good as done, so the paras can have a vacation on the money coming their way, tries to sell it to the City Council with a massive $ tab and gets 47 to agree to it theoretically in the middle of an election but their bluff isn’t called because they only needed the election to be over, and then blames them for not doing as he said (forgetting that the City Council isn’t the Unity caucus). Did I miss anything??

 

Mulgrew has found a way to piss off the billionaire oligarchs and lowest paid rank and file unionists in the City with one bill. Truly remarkable.

 

 And a poem:

Ode to Hot Air Mike
President of Piffle, Sultan of Spin, Lord of the Loophole

Oh Hot Air Mike, thou mighty breeze,
Who fills the halls with empty pleas,
Your town halls soar with pomp and flair—
Yet leave us gasping for real air.

Great Chancellor of Chatter Vague,
Your titles mount like anti-union plague:
“Commander of Circular Replies,”
“Baron of Bureaucratic Lies.”

At 52 Broadway you reign,
With crafted scripts and well-worn strain.
We ask for truth—you dodge and dance,
A master of the vacant stance.

You float above with bloated grace,
Your words: a cloud, your tie: a face.
Beneath, the Unity crew looks glum—
Each nodding head, profoundly dumb.

So here’s to you, oh winded knight,
Who turns each grievance into light.
Our questions burn, our hearts are sore—
You answer us with metaphor.

Long may you drift, ballooned and bold,
Your speeches tepid, stale, and cold.
But know this well, dear Mike of Mist:
The rank and file are getting pissed.

 

UFT Election 25 Dissection: ABC Broke New Ground, Just Not Enough to Win, While ARISE Dived

With indications that ABC will continue to function, I'm writing this analysis as a warning sign for the future of oppo in the UFT as I can foresee the divisions not going away and a similar two slate situation emerging again. I am making the case that only an ABC-like strategy and organization - or dis-organization of individuals can beat Unity. (On Thursday, June 19th, ICEUFT will meet in person to take a deep dive into the issues raised here.) 

That doesn't mean legacy caucuses go away and continue to do the work they do on social justice and other issues, but release their people to run with an ABC-like group while supporting the effort. Knowing the caucus-first mentality, don't expect this to happen on an organizational level, but I appeal to the individuals in the caucuses to think this through. 

 

ARISE spent thousands of dollars on campaign and a glossy flier (almost a work of art) and raced to hundreds of schools to stuff mail boxes, while ABC spend a minimal amount and focused on its people getting out the vote in their schools. 

 

If you are looking for the difference in outcomes, look at these numbers: 

 

ABC ran 560 candidates, 520 of them in the schools (about 40 retirees) while ARISE, despite bragging of the largest number of candidates in decades, had only 490 or so, with 140 retirees, a difference of about 150 in school people. Back in the fall when people were calling for both slates to unite, at least one ARISE steering committee member mocked ABC as being only 7 people and claiming ABC could not get a slate together and would have to come begging. That led to a mentality within ARISE that ABC would fail. 

Monday June 16, 2025 

 

I received a post-election call from a long-time major oppo left-leaning activist from years ago, who did not run in the election, praising ABC on the outcome of the election  - a group of individuals came together - people who had never worked with each other in the past - to win almost 18k and 32% of the votes - the largest oppo vote total in history despite another slate running. He was impressed. 

 

Another left-leaning non-candidate activist also was surprised at the 32% outcome. We had argued throughout the campaign over my contention ABC had a chance to win -- my odds were 10%. His were 1%. My position that ABC could win even with two slates, which was much mocked, while not proven, showed that it was possible. What I never considered was how poorly the legacy caucuses would do - and I even include Unity, given their 54%.

 

Losing by 22 points to Unity still put ABC closer to beating Unity than any oppo I can remember. During the campaign, Unity focused its attacks on ABC and some ARISE leaders from NAC and RA spent more time attacking ABC than Unity, and receiving much praise from Unity people for doing so. This is not to taint all of ARISE, most of whom, especially those in MORE, mostly refrained from attacks. I detected a sense of growing respect, despite differences, between some ABC and MORE people. From the beginning last summer, ABC was open to individuals from MORE running with ABC and some did and played an important role.

 

I've seen some comments from ARISE people talking about the two oppo groups lost to Unity, as if both outcomes were equivalent, thus burying the lead. ABC finished 22% points behind Unity while the ARISE legacy caucuses, despite decades of so-called organizing, finished 40% points behind Unity. 

 

A flip of 11% points between ABC and Unity would have put ABC in a tie with Unity. As people are already looking to 2028, keep this in mind. But don't expect the legacy caucuses to learn a lesson and some in NAC and RA, not willing to face the truth, attribute the difference to dirty tactics or social media or shady practices.

 

Back in December when everyone was going nuts over two slates running against Unity I put forth reasons I thought ABC had a chance of winning: UFT Elections: The Two Slate Solution - Keep Calm. Here were a few key takeaways then (in red) and my current response:

• I've maintained the only way to win this election with the prospects of building dynamic change into the UFT is by enlisting large numbers of working UFTers. Do not rely on retirees to win and dominate a fossilized union (yes I am one of these fossils.) The current configuration of the legacy caucuses unfortunately leads us in this direction.

There was an increase in turnout of 15% up to 28%. ABC needed closer to 33% turnout. For an upstart non-caucus based group, we did not get deep enough but showed a path to victory even with two oppos -- and even if we had run common candidates we would have lost in every area other than the 7 high school seats.

• The 63% retiree vote that the legacy caucuses are relying to deliver will not hold up for this election. In the 2022 UFT general election retirees won 29% -the same number they did in the 2021 RTC election. In the latter election word was out about the medicare situation - my biggest disappointment in that election was not seeing the retiree vote expand. That we didn't increase the retiree vote from the year before when few knew about the health plan changes. That led to me being pessimistic for the past June election. I was wrong. We ran a great campaign but the difference maker: Marianne. Where will she land in this election and if she doesn't get her people involved the retiree vote will drop significantly. Unity still won over 10k in the 2024 chapter loss. Expect that to hold and grow as Unity supporters may have turned on Tom Murphy as RTC leader but may not be willing to turn over the entire union to what will clearly be labeled a left-wing opposition run by legacy caucuses that they have fought for years. RA did not have a bad rep a year ago.

This prediction came through - Unity clawed back 3k votes to get 13K this time but ABC got 9K and ARISE 3k -- not enough to win the retiree vote but close. Clearly RA failed drastically in dropping from 17K a year ago but ABC getting 3x their total proved the influence of Marianne, something my pals in RA had been downgrading, thinking it was their organizing a year ago.  

• ABC is the non-ideological, non-sectarian option with people from every caucus, including Unity, so Unity retirees who know the score may go ABC, but not with a slate dominated with MORE candidates.  

Give me a check on this one. MORE has over 500 members. RA counted on its 300 delegates, who had no say in the choice to run with ARISE to come through. NAC has shown little presence in the schools and did not have faith in the possibilities of ABC and felt an alliance with MORE would make a difference. I argued the opposite to them, to no avail. 

•  The numbers from the UFC full frontal coalition vote in 2022 were not much different from the smaller MORE/NAC coalition in 2016. Why would this election be any different from the in-service vote (Mah Nishtanah), especially since what was UFC is diminished? Given the 2022 vote and reduced caucus coalitions, I maintain Unity would win the election if we were limited to a coalition run similar to UFC, which the legacy caucuses not even reaching the same levels of organizing that UFC, had reached. 

I wrote:

UFC's main success was the increased % for UFC but that was due to Unity drops which did not go to UFC. That dropped Unity vote just might shift into the ABC column due to the Unity presence in ABC.  UFC did not bump up the in-service vote or even the retiree vote in that election.  I contend that with a weakened UFC, these numbers will remain constant for the caucus coalition, with the only wild cards retirees. The only way to win is to go after the 80% who don't usually vote, not an easy task but that looks like the major initiative of ABC and to siphon off Unity votes.

Constant? I was wrong. I actually thought ARISE might get 20-25% and ABC over 30%. And I was wrong about Unity continued drops -- they really brought out their base and increased in every area other than High schools.

I used the 2022 outcome to base a lot of my theories and the numbers for ARISE were worse than they were for UFC, which I also predicted - that ARISE was a diminished UFC which had 7 or 8 components. Nick bragged that the trimmed down to 3 ARISE was so easy to work with. That's very nice and comfortable - for them. The "less is more" theory didn't work in this case. 

• Oh, but what about the retiree and para votes from last spring? They are not automatic and must be worked for. Fix Para Pay is aligned at this point with ABC. So Don't forget the 27k para potential vote. The in-service para vote, with 27k paras, long ignored by the opposition,  may prove more crucial than the retiree vote if we get turnout. Note: A key organizing strategy is taking direct aim at this vote with a plan to fight for para pay instead of the Unity policy of telling them to be happy they have a job.

So this point sort of worked out with 120 paras running with ABC but we had hoped to do much better despite tripling ARISE and getting 1500 more functional votes than UFC did in 2022. That was due mostly to paras but the Unity push for 10k para bonuses (a smart election ploy, still unrealized) worked and the hoped-for tap into the 27k para vote was only partially successful. ABC also aimed to tap into other functional areas like OT/PT and nurses and probably did. But the Unity campaign worked - compare 2025 to 2022.

 

• ABC with a drastic new approach to not just running in the election but open to taking the election-building process out from behind closed doors and get more rank and file involved - and it has been working. Sample: 100 showed for a zoom for paras and district 75 on Tuesday, and over 50 for a High School zoom Wednesday, including chapter leaders from large high schools, including some key people from Unity.That followed a general meeting with 260 people. Think each in-service having some kind of network outreach in their schools. ABC is building the broadest coalition and still invites all legacy caucus members and supporters to run on the ABC independent slate with no labels. Already some have signed up to run. Is it enough yet? No. But there's a long way to go before ballots go out in May and petitioning starting Feb. 12. And ABC has the petition king: ME.

Well, I was pleasantly surprised at how relatively easy the petitioning was compared to 2022, with loads of ABC retiree and active people coming out to assist. Even I underestimated the vigor of ABCers. The one snag, if you call it that, was how aggressive ABC people were in recruiting candidates in the final week which forced us to spend the final weekend processing them - every candidate needed wet signature which made things difficult. A delightful snag. If we had another week we would have run a full slate of 750.

• Almost 40% of Trump supporters in NYS are in a union and many of them in the UFT and also anti-Mulgrew. Many have been non-voters in the past. With an ABC option that is focused on bread and butter and without a leftist ideology reputation, they may vote. Some will say how dare you hope Trump supporters vote for you? How dare I run to win.   

ABC WAS WILLING TO TALK TO ALL UFT MEMBERS AND AVOIDS PURGES AND SHUNNING -  HORRORS!

 

ABC has been vilified for trying to keep communication open to a wide variety of UFT members and focused on what members felt were important in their schools. Some in ARISE bragged about how moral and progressive they were and branded ABC as right wing troglodytes despite the fact that the overwhelming majority of key activists had a long record of progressive politics. 

When you run to win, you have to be willing to listen to everyone and not set up ideological walls -- you know, not call fellow UFT members you disagree with "deplorable."   

 

In recent discussions during the vote count when I asked some of the ARISE people why run if you know you will lose, the response was to "get our ideas and visions out". The thinking is that long-term they can win enough progressives over. I respond that you will have little influence unless you can win and then have the full resources of the UFT to try to win people over in a democratic and transparent process. But running in elections is embedded in the DNA of caucuses and don't be surprised to see it happen again in 2028.

 

Unity bummed at how poorly ARISE did 

The biggest disappointment to Unity was how bad ARISE did as ABC emerged as the big oppo dog. For ABC, it should try to convince the independent minds in ARISE to work with ABC in the next election while also continuing to work with their caucuses which could still use the election process and save their resources to promote their positions. They could still put out a leaflet and flood the mail boxes while not running --- a position I advocated for MORE in my final days there in late 2018 before the 2019 election. That helped get me kicked out of MORE. 

Split in MORE - Results strengthen the "don't run wing"

Back in August/September when MORE was debating whether to run at all, run alone or run in coalition, a strong group of 35 out of 160 who voted (what happened to the 500 MORE members?) were against running in coalition "with people who do not share their values." That says a lot about MORE and the lack of GOTV. In the vote to accept the coalition only 70 MOREs voted. 

 

The pro-coalition group knew full well that NAC had little pull in the schools but did have a large group of retirees who would do the work. NAC believed MORE had the horses in the schools to pull out votes. RA was viewed by both as the big retiree dog and the failure on that end is clear. 

 

I will say that inside ABC, while not wanting to run in an election with a group having the MORE label, the feelings about individuals in MORE have not been negative while there is a lot more people pissed off at NAC and RA. A lot of the ABC crowd are thankful to the people in MORE for informing them of the urinal attack on Amy. I think on the person to person level we may see some cooperation on common issues. 

 

 

NEXT: I will breakdown the elem, ms and hs results. 

 

Future of the Dem Party 

Is Randi moving left? Randi Quits DNC -- 

 

And these articles:

https://post.substack.com/p/whos-going-to-run-new-york?

https://rosselliotbarkan.com/p/the-collapse-of-the-professional?

https://rosselliotbarkan.com/p/the-three-factions-of-the-american?

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/03/22/the-making-of-the-new-left

 

 

ABC Celebrates End of School Year June 27 - Join in, ICE-UFT Does Election Dissection June 19

ICE-UFT is setting up an in-person meeting to dissect the UFT election on June 19th at a midtown diner - yes, rice pudding on the menu (this photo is from 2013). This will be a hard-hitting no holds barred analysis. 

Email me if interested:
normsco@gmail.com. There's limited space.

 

Saturday, June 14th, 2025

All 18 thousand ABC voters are welcome --- 

Good Afternoon, ABC People - and the rest of the alphabet.

Thank you so much to everyone one of you who supported and participated in the campaign for A Better Contract, and who voted for A Better Contract in the 2025 UFT General Election! 

We want to thank you all who had one-on-one conversations, flyered, texted, knocked on neighbors doors, and came to Zoom calls. WE are the UNION, and we showed the way to how we can organise, come together and fight! This does not stop at this election-- we are not going away!

As thanks and to celebrate, we are hosting an ABC Party on Friday, 6/27 at 6pm at 

El Vez (reflected in the RSVP Google Form) in Lower Manhattan:

Venue: El Vez

Event Address:   259 Vesey St, New York, NY 10282
Contact Phone:  (212) 233-2500
Menu: https://elveznyc.com/menus/happy-hour/ 

Date/Time: Friday, June 27th at 6PM

Let's celebrate our success and meet each other in-person! Thank you for believing and supporting ABC!

Google Form: https://forms.gle/8d8xT47HkZH7DACu6 

Best,

Also, please share with any ABC supporter and friend you know! The more, the merrier!

Let's continue to organize and hold Mulgrew/ Unity accountable as we prepare for chapter elections in 2027 and the next general election in 2028! 

 

 6/27 ABC Party RSVP

UFT Election Results: Unity’s Grip Weakens—A Better Contract Rises as Only Growing Force- By Mike Schirtzer

 June 8, 2025

First let me state that neither Mike nor I speak for ABC but our words will be used as representative of ABC. ABC clearly arose - or arised - or arrived. ABC is criticized for being too aggressive - exactly the opposite of how UFT leadership behaves passively when dealing with the DOE and politicians -- but they sure are aggressive in attacking ABC. Frankly, I want more ABC in your face when dealing with the DOE and Mayor.

I don't agree with everything that Mike Schirtzer, the eternal optimist, says here. As a pessimist I can't even guarantee ABC is still around in 3 years. Or next month. (Cheers arise from ARISE - and Unity.) But getting about 18k votes, the highest of any opposition in history, is nothing to sneeze at and was not due to social media but to having people in the schools. Do they know you, do they trust you, as James Eterno used to say, is operative. 

Mike will come under attack for this post. How dare Mike celebrate the UFT election as a "win" for ABC? I'd say some people in ABC are not celebrating because they thought they would win, unlike ARISE which knew they would lose. They would be celebrating if they ran roughly even with ABC. But instead of analyzing their 18 point loss to ABC and their 40 point loss to Unity, they are blaming ABC's campaign. Talk about tone-deaf. My prediction is that ARISE will re-arise in 3 years and play the same losing game by making it impossible to have one slate - the Einstein definition of insanity. 

This is not to say that many ABCs would work with almost everyone in ARISE in the future (except for one or two) but not with the caucuses themselves. And in fact ABC took that position since November and will continue to take that position.

[Check out what I wrote 5 years apart: April 28, 2019: UFT Election Overall and Retiree Data... and June 25, 2024 - Can Unity Be Beaten in 2025 UFT Election?]

The major obstacles to defeating Unity after these results are the weakness of the caucuses after decades of getting the same results and their insistence that only they should be allowed to run UFT elections. (My next post will do a breakdown of the numbers). 

The attacks on ABC from both Unity and ARISE are similar (Leo Casey and Nick Bacon separated at birth) - and we saw in the campaign an informal alliance of sorts between Unity and ARISE -- like the ARISE candidate who ran against Mulgrew is doing workshops next weekend at the UFT (and Mulgrew called on her twice at the DA). And the enormous praise for a co-chair of one of the ARISE caucuses who is also on the ARISE steering committee for relentless attacks on ABC going back months -- a clear sign that elements of ARISE are already thinking that the goal is not uniting with ABC but exterminating ABC and leaving the field to the same old caucuses that failed so badly in this election. And Unity has the same goal. Build up ARISE as the legitimate and loyal opposition and try to bury ABC.... Oh, and Mike, who has been on the UFT Exec Board for 9 years, elected on the MORE and then the Unity slates, will now be off the board ------ Norm

UFT Election Results: Unity’s Grip Weakens—A Better Contract Rises as Only Growing Force- 

 By Mike Schirtzer

 

Unity didn’t win. They survived. And their time is running out.

The numbers are in—and while President Mulgrew and his Unity Caucus claims another win, the truth is undeniable: their mandate is collapsing.

Out of over 200,000 UFT members, 57,905 ballots were counted (an increase of 15% from the last election but still only 28% of eligible voters). Of those, Unity received just 30,219 votes. That means fewer than 1 in 10 members actively support this leadership. Most didn’t vote at all—because they either didn’t know there was an election, or they’ve lost faith that anyone is listening.

UFT Election Fallout - Retiree Advocate Loses Two Elections - Warning Signs for Future Control of RTC

This is updated from the original post.

Takeaway:

RA loses to Unity and ABC as ABC triples the retiree vote of ARISE, which has two 30 year old caucuses full of retirees. How can that happen? Will RA face the facts or look to place blame on the way ABC ran their campaign or the issues they ran on - or maybe they used voodoo.

Can the damaged RA brand, king of the hill a year ago, be restored? Not without restructuring. The total retiree non-Unity vote was still 47%. To stop the bleeding, a non-partisan retiree council should be formed that would be inclusive of retirees from ARISE, ABC and independents. 

Monday, June 4, 2025

Unity has its sights set on winning back the RTC from RA in the 2027 chapter election and the recent UFT election results indicate they have a good chance. 

The impact of Marianne has been major and I will prove it with the numbers over the past 4 years of retiree votes in both chapter and general UFT elections. No wonder Unity and some ARISE went after her. And with only 53% retirees for Unity in this election, look for the attacks on her to continue (ie. Leo Casey whose analysis is a total attack on her and ABC while not recognizing that the pro-Marianne faction tripled the vote of the non-Marianne group - clearly his favored opposition is the one that got 14%). 

An old lefty told me not long ago that he thinks Marianne is remarkable and has put the left so-called labor organizers to shame by building a multi-union machine reaching deep into the working class. Let me point out here that Unity only recovered 3k votes from last year while the combined ABC/ARISE lost about 6k - meaning a whole bunch of former supporters did not vote this time and attribute some of that to the split opposition. A united retiree group next time could bring these votes back. 

The only question is will RA wise up and face the reality of their poor showing with ARISE with only 12% of retiree votes or team up with ABC and its 35% and stop Unity from taking back the chapter in 2027? Knowing the politics I'm not so sure.

Let me point out this is not about ARISE and ABC but about retirees from both groups coming together. But the way RA does business has got to change for this to happen. 

A year ago RA and the oppo cheered Marianne's support for RA but soured once she supported ABC in this election. I even heard some RA people claiming it was their organizing that won 63% a year ago, with some assistance from Marianne, which astounded me. You don't go from 30% to 63% in such a short time just based on a caucus doing better organizing.

First the hard numbers, and then some background. 

Jon Halabi chart

As you can see, Unity took 53% of the retiree vote while ARISE had only 12%, with ABC getting 35%. Now look at 2022 when UFC, an expanded form of ARISE, garnered only 29% with Unity getting 70%. I have to say that the 2022 results really disappointed me since the Medicare issue had been out there for a year and I had hoped RA would get the vote over 40% which is why I had dim hopes of winning in last year's chapter elections. Even I didn't think Marianne would be such a factor.

In the last UFT election in 2022 RA was one of the 7 or 8 members of the United for Change coalition,  which this time split into 3 for ARISE and elements of the rest with ABC. (Thus my contention from almost a year ago that an ARISE like coalition would not be able to even match the UFC output, which proved true.

Retirees: 

68,970 ballots sent,  

Retirees: 27,451 - this was over the 23k limit so each vote counted as a fraction - RA got over 8k and Unity over 18k in terms of real votes but 

Adjusted  

UFC - 6837.15      29.20%

Unity - 16580.64  70.80%

Also note that in the 2021 RTC election, RA got just short of 7K real votes, also 29%.

Now the 2021 result, just as the Medicare story was emerging, was a big improvement for RA over previous elections when they used to get under 4K -- 20%. That ARISE only pulled half of RA got in 2021 is shocking. 

In past elections, we would have seen a 53% Unity retiree vote as giving us a real shot to break their control because historically they had been winning with high 70s to 80s %. But times have changed. This time RA hoped that the way they ran the RTC chapter compared to the Unity old guard would bring votes but that had no effect as the 3k total takes us back to 2018 days.

The Chapter elections are not quite the same but are also indicators. What a difference in last year's vote, which saw a massive turnaround when Retiree Advocate, the 30-year old oppo to Unity in the retiree chapter, blew things open with a 63% win with over 17k to Unity's 10k votes, a complete reversal of recent elections. 

How do we explain these flip flops? One word - MARIANNE. She has activated a whole range of people from many city unions, which is what scares the UFT leadership. And frankly, an uncontrolled newly active group also seems to scare the old-time oppo who are often more interested in control and getting the "right" people - meaning, of their political persuasion. God forbid a Trumpie should slip in. 

RA has got to change from a tiny self-chosen group that meets and makes decisions behind closed doors.

I've been part of the Retiree Advocate organizing committee for about ten years and it's been a very satisfactory relationship - until this election where I was the only one of the dozen members to go with ABC while the rest went with ARISE. I'm not going into the details as they get annoyed if I reveal what happens at their meetings, which by the way is a problem for a group that calls for transparency and represents retirees, most of whom are not aware or invited to these meetings or even see minutes of what is discussed.

Now we were all very happy for the arrangement we had where we chose whom to invite to join us - and until we won the massive victory over Unity with 63% of the vote last June when people who ran (300 delegates) or voted for us started asking questions on how we operate. At first, back in July, I defended how we operate but it was clear RA would have to do something to expand the organizing committee which I thought would happen in 6 months. But then the division in the election came along and RA Org decided to join ARISE without any discussion with its supporters, especially the 300 who ran as delegates. 

Look at the numbers. Unity won back about 3k which I expected to happen and thought it might be worse. We won unity votes a year ago but while they might be ok in losing the chapter they were not willing to hand over the entire union yet. But together we still got 46%. Also thousands of retirees who voted last time didn’t vote. Those were our potential votes. 

Let’s get them back. 

 

Election Reaction - Statement from A Better Contract

Hey folks. I just want to thank all of you that chose to support this slate. Although we didn’t win, we knocked Unity down from 66% in 2022 to 54% this time around. We're chipping away at Unity's choke hold on UFT... Comment from an ABC candidate

Sunday June 1

For a brand new group of people getting a third of the vote is a decent showing. If not for some unforced errors we might have gotten close. 

But we will try to examine where we missed. But also examine the strengths. Building the plane while flying it is tough but also fun. What does this say about the caucuses and their outreach after decades of existence? But do watch the spin. I know there are demands to come together. Can you mix a caucus based group with the free-style ABC? I don't think easily but ABC always has a welcome mat out for anyone interested.

I left the count Friday night at 7:30 to catch the last ferry to Rockaway under the assumption they would count until 1-2AM to get it done, but when I got home there was a new plan- to stop and continue Saturday morning.  

So I shlepped back on the 8AM ferry, stayed until 1PM - and still no results until our intrepid reporters sent out the results around 2PM. Our crew to the right. 

UFT Election Results - 46% say NO to Unity (Slate only): Unity 54%, ABC 32%, ARISE 14%

We Are Down But Not Out: Unity wins again, but by the lowest margin in their history ---- Arthur reported on his experience on Saturday. 

Now, there's a lot to mull over but I admit to being somewhat surprised to see the positive reactions from so many ABCers who expected to win this election. I thought they might be crushed and disappear but holy cow, they seem rearing to go back to the fray - well, maybe take a week or so off. In the past, the usual suspects from the oppo - usually an alliance of caucuses, went their separate ways and let two years go by before realigning for the next election. Since ABC is an alliance of individuals, this separation may not happen and there's a lot of excited back room chatter on next steps. Hard to say, given the loose structure of ABC.

I loved the comment from one of our retirees who said on Friday that she loved running with ABC and felt so welcome and heard, unlike being associated with RA where she felt left out. 

There is a lot of hand wringing from the same people who wanted one slate and felt we could have beaten Mulgrew. They refuse to understand that the only way there could have been one slate would have been under the ARISE caucus driven formula -- how did that work out? Don't forget --- ABC always offered everyone the opportunity to run with ABC and will do so in the future. Those who want one slate go talk to the 14%ers.

Sorry, after all the scurrilous attacks by some ARISE leading lights, some just a few days ago, I'm not in the mood to be magnanimous.  

I can only say how happy I was to be involved with the people from ABC. We were serious about trying to win rather than running to try to make a point about where we stand politically but also had a lot of fun with each other. We were attacked for not talking about Trump enough -- like talking about para pay or how teachers were under attack or retiree healthcare were attempts to appeal to Trump supporters. Give me a break. I call bullshit in advance at what will be some of the bitter people in ARISE who will try to blame ABC as a way to cover for their failures.

Now let me point out, the bitter people in ARISE are the few. More than a few may seek to work with ABC but their caucus structures will be an obstacle. I will get more into those structures and delve into why two 30 and one 13 year old caucuses with all their supposed outreach could only muster 14% after spending a lot of money and energy on this campaign, while an ad hoc group of individuals that spent maybe 2 grand managed to get a third of the vote. What do these outcomes auger for the future? I will delve into these issues very soon. 

 

Statement from A Better Contract: This Campaign Changed the UFT

A Better Contract

May 31, 2025

The results are in. While our slate did not win this election, what we built together will outlast any ballot count.

From the beginning, we knew what we were up against: a well-funded machine with decades of institutional control. But we had something they couldn’t manufacture—member energy. Across chapters and titles, UFT members showed they were ready for change.

A Better Contract was never just a slate. It is a movement. And that movement has reshaped this union’s political landscape. Secretaries, paraprofessionals, school nurses, teachers, clinicians, retirees—thousands of members organized their schools, reignited chapters, and took ownership of our union’s future. For many, this was their first time participating. It won’t be their last.

We ran on the belief that this union belongs to its members. That leadership should be earned, not handed down. That our contracts should reflect the real value of our work—not serve as placeholders while our conditions erode. And that power grows through connection—not control. Our union isn’t a ladder with a few at the top—it’s a living network, strengthened by every relationship, every act of solidarity, every member who refuses to stand alone.

That belief is now shared by more members than ever before.

We are proud of what we’ve done. Proud to have shifted the narrative. Proud that demands for transparency, democratic reform, and member-led bargaining—once silenced or dismissed—were brought into the open, debated, and embraced by members hungry for a different kind of union.

So we’ll say this plainly: we’re watching. We all heard the promises Unity made during this campaign—for paras, for retirees, and for those working in Tier 6, to name just a few. Those promises were born of pressure from facing a viable challenge for the first time in UFT history, and they will be met with accountability. The membership demands that Unity now deliver.

This campaign has changed the UFT. It awakened members who had long been disengaged. It connected voices across boroughs, titles, and schools. It reminded all of us that organizing works and that no amount of money or messaging can stop a union whose members are ready to lead.

None of this would have been possible without our supporters, who have from the start been the heart of our efforts. “Member-driven” isn’t just a slogan for us, it’s an ethos. To everyone who voted for the change we offered, we offer you the sincerest and most heartfelt of thank yous.

We may not have won this round. But we’ve already won something bigger: a shift in what’s possible.

In Solidarity,
The A Better Contract Slate

Here is one other point of view:

I’m proud to have run with ABC. We stood for member driven democracy, transparency, honesty. We did change the narrative and hopefully more will be listening and waking up. Than you for all the hard work everyone put in! Let’s keep the message out there.

Win or lose,, you are the best. The fight persists.

This is not the result I wanted. Just know I promise to be here with you for the fight. I believe in ABC!

An abolitionist minister, Theodore Parker, stated that "[t]he arc of history is long, but it bends towards justice." Congratulations on taking the longer view, the unselfish road, the path toward justice for all members.

I'm very sad. Thank you for organizing. Thank you for running. When is the next election? In three years? There is time. There is hope. Always. Always. ABC!!!

We gave it our all. There’s always tomorrow. Never give up. Thank you

Live to fight another day. I find it hard to understand why we lost since Mulgrew clearly did not act in the best interest of the retirees and longterm he did not act in the best interest of the active members. This might have been the first but it will not be the last time Mulgrew makes a malevolent decision.

Well that means arise only got 14 percent. I don’t understand why Mulgrew got 54% of the votes. I wish people would come to their senses.

I hope the next election ABC and ARISE can unite against unity caucus.

I am very sad and thank you for your support.