Retirees Remain Hopeful as Election Day Results are Tabulated

Democrats defied expectations in the midterm elections, potentially defending enough seats to maintain control of the Senate with control of the House of Representatives still undetermined.

One hundred seventy-seven of the 266 Alliance-endorsed federal candidates won, with 40 of those races still undetermined.

Texas Alliance activists demonstrated in Dallas at a "Get out the Vote" rally downtown on November 8.

Alliance-endorsed John Fetterman defeated Dr. Mehmet Oz in Pennsylvania. Fetterman campaigned on retirement security issues, including expanding Social Security and increasing benefits and restoring the “union way of life.”

Two other races critical to the outcome of Senate control — Arizona and Nevada — were too close to call as of the Friday Alert deadline, and a December 6 run-off will take place between Alliance-endorsed Sen. Raphael Warnock and Hershel Walker in Georgia. Whichever party wins at least 2 of these three seats will control the Senate.

Key wins in governors’ races included victories by Gretchen Whitmer in Michigan and Josh Shapiro in Pennsylvania. An important governor’s race in Arizona is also still too early to call.

“Thank you to all of our members who worked so hard to get out the vote,” said Robert Roach, Jr., President of the Alliance. "You elected and re-elected candidates who will continue to expand and protect Social Security and Medicare."

President Biden said on Wednesday that he wants to work with Republicans, but he will not compromise on issues including cutting Social Security and any of the Inflation Reduction Act provisions that lower prescription drug prices, including allowing Medicare negotiate lower drug prices, free vaccines, a $35 per month cap on insulin costs, and an out of pocket drug cost cap for Medicare beneficiaries.

“We know we will need to vigorously protect our earned benefits from attack during the next Congress, and we are more than ready to do that,” added Richard Fiesta, Executive Director of the Alliance.

Decision Blocks Illegal Hand Counting of Ballots in Cochise County in Arizona Alliance Lawsuit - but Board of Supervisors Appeals

Ruling on a lawsuit filed by the Arizona Alliance, a judge on Monday blocked rural Cochise county's plan to conduct a full hand-count of ballots from the current election — a measure requested by Republican officials who expressed unfounded concerns that vote-counting machines are untrustworthy.

However, the Board of Supervisors voted 2 to 1 on Wednesday to appeal the judge's decision to the Arizona Supreme Court.

The Monday decision was issued by the Arizona Superior Court, Pima County for the County of Cochise in the case Arizona Alliance for Retired Americans v. Crosby. The Arizona Alliance had sued to block the County’s plan to perform a hand count audit of all early ballots, in violation of state law.

“The ruling was a big win for all voters in Cochise County, particularly older voters who are more likely to vote early in Arizona,” said Arizona Alliance President Saundra Cole. “All voters have the right to cast a ballot that will be counted – in the most accurate way possible. Elected officials must follow the law and this ruling affirms the rule of law.”

The Arizona Alliance members had previously won two other voting rights lawsuits this year.

Kaiser Health News: Supreme Court to Hear Nursing Home Case That Could Affect Millions By Farah Yousry, Side Effects Public Media

Susie Talevski has gone through years of legal back-and-forth with the state agency that operates the nursing home where her father, Gorgi, resided before his death.

When Susie Talevski sued the agency that managed her elderly father’s care before he died, she hoped to get justice for her family. She did not expect the case would grow into a national bellwether. A ruling against her could strip millions of vulnerable Americans of their power to hold states accountable when they do not receive benefits allowed by law.

“This case has taken on, really, a life of its own way beyond what I could have foreseen,” said Talevski, a resident of Valparaiso, Indiana.