FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
“Bring Our Troops Home” Initiatives
Sweep Wisconsin, Illinois,
Massachusetts
Contact:
Wisconsin: Steve Burns, (608) 250-9240
Illinois: Laurel
Lambert Schmidt (708) 447-9577, (708) 991-8175 (cell), Siobhan Kolar, (630) 270-8520
Massachusetts: Paul Shannon (617) 497-5273 or (617) 623-5288
Wisconsin, Illinois and Massachusetts “Bring Our
Troops Home” ballot initiatives are headed for a sweep of every community in
which they appeared.
In Wisconsin, final returns
for Boscobel, Fox Point, Lake Delton, Middleton, South Milwaukee, Springdale
and Viroqua and Wauwatosa show all initiatives passing, winning with more than
60% of the vote in several communities.
As of 1:00 am Tuesday Night,
with 98% of precincts reporting, the City of Milwaukee
voted 72% for “orderly, rapid and comprehensive withdrawal” from Iraq,
and with 85% of Precincts reporting, Racine
voters approved their “Troops Home” initiative with a 61% “yes” vote.
Wisconsin’s statewide totals gave a more than two-to-one “yes”
vote.
In Illinois,
final returns for the state capitol, Springfield,
gave a 60% “yes” vote, while partial returns as of 1:00 am showed all
initiatives passing, some with “yes” votes approaching 70%. Champaign township,
with 94% reporting, gave a 57% “yes” vote, and Cunningham township, with 86%
reporting, showed a 65% “yes” vote. In Cook County,
with 49% reporting, the initiative was winning with a 66% “yes” vote. DuPage
and Kane Counties, home of several of the successful
initiatives, were carried by George W. Bush in the 2004 election.
And, most remarkably, In
Massachusetts, where 36 legislative districts voted on a resolution to “end the war in Iraq
immediately and bring all United
States military forces home”, the Boston
Globe reported that, as of 2:00 am Eastern Time, all 36 districts had voted in
favor of the initiative. The districts encompassed 139 Massachusetts communities.
“I
don’t think the voters could make themselves any clearer. The voters get it –
they know that the best thing for the American people and the Iraqi people is
for us to bring our troops home from their country. Now it’s time for our
government to listen” said Steve Burns, Program Coordinator for the Wisconsin
Network for Peace and Justice.
“I was blown away by the totals” said Laurel Lambert
Schmidt, an organizer of the initiatives in Berwyn
and Riverside
townships. Partial returns showed a 71% “yes” vote in Berwyn,
and a 61% “yes” vote in Riverside.
“The
antiwar majority has spoken!” said Siobhan Kolar, an initiative organizer in Geneva Township,
which reported a 54% “yes” vote.
A
full summary of “Troops Home” initiative language is available at: www.wnpj.org/homenow and full election
returns will be posted there when they become final.
