With One Week Until Election Day, Tribal and Labor Leaders, Firefighters, and Physicians Urge Washingtonians to Vote ‘No’ on I-2117
Seatte, WA, October 29, 2024 – With one week until Election Day, statewide leaders from the No on 2117 campaign’s unprecedented coalition gathered in the South Park neighborhood of Seattle to urge Washingtonian’s to vote ‘no’ on Initiative 2117. The leaders gathered in a community that is significantly overburdened by pollution.
No on 2117 speakers, coalition members, and volunteers gather in the Duwamish Valley to oppose Initiative 2117
The No on 2117 coalition has grown to more than 575 organizations and Tribal Nations working to defeat I-2117. This includes 20 Tribal Nations in Washington state, more than 200 doctors and nurses, more than 35 labor unions, small businesses, leading companies, community organizations, and environmental groups.
The campaign continues to advance its statewide direct voter contact efforts. To date, No on 2117 organizers and volunteers have knocked on 152,000 doors and made 123,000 phone calls across all 39 Washington counties. The campaign has mobilized nearly 1,900 unique volunteers across 2,600 volunteer shifts.
“Initiative 2117 is bad for Washington, bad for Tribal nations, bad for our relatives — salmon, the trees, and bad for our health, and so much more,” said Alyssa Macy, CEO, Washington Conservation Action and a citizen of the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, Oregon. “Tribes across the Pacific Northwest understand the direct impact increased pollution has on our environment, our communities, our economies, our culture and our way of life. That is why 20 Washington Tribal nations are urging communities to vote ‘NO’ on Initiative 2117 this November.”
“Firefighters know firsthand the devastating effects wildfires have on our communities and our lands. Initiative 2117 would mean our state’s forests are less resilient to wildfires and local communities are less prepared,” said Dennis Lawson, President, Washington State Council of Fire Fighters and a firefighter in Washington state for 35 years. “The Washington State Council of Fire Fighters urges communities across our state to join firefighters in rejecting this harmful initiative.”
“Initiative 2117 is bad for our health, and it’s a bad deal for Washington,” said Dr. Vin Gupta, a pulmonologist and critical care physician. “As a pulmonologist treating critically ill patients, I know firsthand the devastating effects increased pollution has on our health. I-2117 would make pollution worse, which is why I, along with more than 200 doctors across Washington state, am calling on voters to reject this dangerous, deceptive initiative.”
“The Washington State Labor Council represents over half a million union members in Washington including firefighters, nurses, construction workers, and truck drivers across our state,” said April Sims, President, Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO. “We know better than most that Initiative 2117 is a job killer. It is a direct threat to working families, which is why more than 35 labor unions across Washington state urge communities to reject I-2117 this November.”
No on 2117 continues to advance its unprecedented effort to defeat I-2117 across fundraising, field organizing, paid media, and coalition-building. A recent poll from the Seattle Times, KING 5, and the University of Washington’s Center for an Informed Public found the “no” vote leading by 18 percentage points among likely voters.
More information on the No on 2117 campaign is available at https://no2117.com/.