A Good Guy Finally Wins

When Fitz Reid's bid for the presidency of Health Service Employees Local 768 of District Council 37 fell two votes short a couple of years ago, it seemed like the usual machinations that have harmed the larger union had prevailed.

That race was tilted in favor of incumbent Darryl Ramsey when the decision was made not to count eight ballots that were all cast by Public Health Sanitarians, the job title that Mr. Reid comes from and which was one of his voting strongholds. The claim was made that they were not bona fide union members but rather agency fee-payers who were ineligible to vote, even though they had evidence contradicting this finding.

Last week, in a rematch of the disputed 2006 election, Mr. Reid got justice, in the form of a 139-vote margin of victory over Mr. Ramsey. He is likely to encourage greater activism within the local, as well as pressing to ensure that all those who want to be full union members are given that right.

In both respects, he will serve as a strong example for the rest of the 125,000-member DC 37, whose power has diminished markedly over the past two decades because its leaders have seemed concerned that engaging the rank and file could be hazardous to their own political futures.