Indiana Democratic leader prepped for right-to-work vote

(01-25) 12:59 PST Indianapolis (AP) -- Indiana's House Democratic Leader told the Associated Press on Wednesday that Democrats are prepared to take a final vote on a measure that would make Indiana the first right-to-work state in the traditionally union-heavy Rust Belt.

"We did better than anybody ever expected," said House Minority Leader Patrick Bauer, adding that outnumbered Democrats fought the best they could in the divisive labor battle that would make Indiana the 23rd right-to-work state.

Indiana would mark the first win in 10 years for national right-to-work advocates who have pushed unsuccessfully for the measure in other states following a Republican sweep of statehouses in 2010.

But Republicans have struggled with similar anti-union measures in other Rust-Belt states like Wisconsin and Ohio where they have faced a massive backlash. Ohio voters overturned Gov. John Kasich's labor measures last November and union activists delivered roughly 1 million petitions last week in an effort to recall Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker.

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