After a hard-fought Special Election sent him to the Florida Senate in March, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Worker’s (IBEW) own Brian Nathan is determined to beat the odds again in November. Reporters and pundits declared his first win a major upset: A Pro-Worker, Pro-Union political newcomer prevailing in a Deep-Red District against a cattle rancher with rich and powerful backers. Even the Chair of the State’s Democratic Party considered it a “shocking victory.” The media called the race for Nathan when he was up by 408 votes, less than 1% of the ballots cast. A pub-packed with his supporters erupted - family, friends and fellow Union Members jumping up and down, waving signs and chanting “Brian!” “It was unlike anything I’ve ever experienced,” the Tampa IBEW Local 915 Organizer said. “We knew it was going to be close. She (opponent Josie Tomkow) out-fundraised and outspent me. But when we saw the early returns, we thought, ‘OK, we’re actually in this.’ We did the work, and it was paying off.” While he’d never been a candidate, he was far from a political novice. He’d been interacting with Lawmakers for years, fighting for the IBEW and Labor more broadly as part of the Florida AFL-CIO’s Working Families Lobby Corps. The program expands the practice of lobby days to a week or longer, ensuring that there’s always a Union Voice in Tallahassee when the Legislature is in session. “You can’t be afraid to push back and say no, even if you think it might hurt you a little bit. The voters can smell if you’re authentic or not from a mile away and at the end of the day you have to remember that those are the people you’re representing, those are the people you’re fighting for.” 

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