An important contest is brewing in Georgia for 2026 and the IBEW is already rallying labor to support its candidate, Sen. Jon Ossoff.
The state of play: Ossoff squeaked out a victory in 2020, thanks to a big mobilization effort from working families. After winning a runoff he became a top target of Senate Republicans.
Since then, Ossoff and other Democrats voted for historic energy, infrastructure and manufacturing laws that put IBEW members to work across the country.
Now, the Trump administration and the Republican controlled Congress are dismantling that progress step by step.
Zoom in: On Aug. 14, Fifth District International Representative Will Salters gathered the state’s labor leaders to meet with Ossoff to hash out strategies for next year. Salters said the 50 state building trades and AFL-CIO leaders in the room represented nearly 100,000 Georgians. Their help will be critical to reelecting Ossoff.
Ossoff discussed the:
- Recent tax and spending bill, which has cancelled $17 billion in energy projects and nearly 20,000 jobs
- Repeal of tax credits that put IBEW members to work on renewable energy projects since the passing of the Inflation Reduction Act in 2022
- Efforts to privatize the Tennessee Valley Authority, making electricity more costly, triggering the loss of skilled union jobs, including those of 10,000 IBEW members
Salters said it will be a challenge to break through the political noise to talk to members about how elected leaders are currently voting against jobs for Georgians.
By the numbers: In the past few months alone, a $2.6 billion battery manufacturing plant in Newnan, GA was cancelled, construction on another plant near Register, GA for electric vehicle battery parts was also halted. And a $500 million solar glass manufacturing plant in Cedartown, GA was also delayed. That plant was expected to create 1,200 local jobs for Georgians.
“On a daily basis, Sen. Ossoff advocates for everything we do, protecting good wages, our pensions, and Social Security,” Salters said when introducing Ossoff. “The other guys push for the exact opposite. That’s why we need to put every resource into winning the midterms next year.”