Holding Our Elected Officials Accountable

In 2008, as part of SEIU’s nationwide “Justice for All” plan — an effort to align the members, resources and staff of the union to win health care for all and freedom for workers to organize — SEIU members across the country came together to extend our political efforts past Election Day to hold our elected leaders accountable for the promises they make to working families.

SEIU members know all too well that it isn’t enough to have the candidates we support win. The Accountability Project is about making sure that our hard work means real change for working families. By extending our efforts, we're making sure that elected officials actions match their campaign promises.

The Accountability Project includes:

• A fund to take on elected officials who fail to live up to their promises
• The mobilization of millions of members to hold Congress
• accountable by making phone calls following the election
• The dedication of at least 50 percent of the union's organizing budget and non-organizing staff to the effort
• A commitment to jump start a much broader, permanent grassroots movement of working people by actively involving at least one million members by 2012, and creating leadership roles for at least 200,000 of them

Members adopted the plan at the 2008 SEIU Convention in Puerto Rico in early June. It is a significant step toward ensuring the future of change we are united to win.