The prevailing political winds that are blowing full blast as we approach the November elections appear to be blowing against progressive, labor-supported candidates and issues. But there are some crosscurrents that work in our favor.

One bellwether poll earlier this year that asked about which political party the public supports for Congress tilted toward the Republicans. Recently the odds evened out with some leaning toward the Democrats.

A big issue conservative-minded candidates hoped to run on — the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) — has been defanged. The health care law, with all its fits and starts, is working so well that even Republican governors are trying to find face-saving ways of implementing the programs in their states.

The latest news on Medicare is that it is in better shape than ever, with costs increasing at lower rates than budget analysts (and critics) could imagine.

Courts across the country are overturning attempts by many red states to suppress the voting rights of minorities who tend to vote for Democrats.

Promoting issue discussions on income inequality, the minimum wage and attacks on pensions and tenure all resonate in our favor and should encourage voter turnout.

So, politically, this is a month of anticipation, with pundits wondering if there will be an October surprise. UFT volunteers working with NYSUT, the AFT, the AFL-CIO and the Alliance for Retired Americans are focusing on Pennsylvania, Nevada, Florida and North Carolina to make that surprise happen. And, since polls are improving in Pennsylvania, the AFT asked us to focus on Wisconsin and Michigan instead. That’s a hopeful sign.

Why the all-out effort? When Tea Party and like-minded candidates won overwhelming victories in congressional, state and local elections in 2010, they immediately began redistricting congressional districts, rigging them in their favor for the next decade. Right-wing state legislatures and governors began to undo years of progressive accomplishments by passing right-to-work and voter suppression laws and denying pension and health coverage and collective bargaining. Income disparity grew, diminishing the dignity of working-class people striving to join and maintain middle-class status.

It all came about because labor and its allies conceded the 2010 off-year, down-ticket elections to the bad guys. But we are determined to win back our losses. It is a tough, tough fight. But when voters hear and focus on our messages, they respond. The states we’ve been asked to focus on are winnable fights.

In Michigan and Wisconsin, the AFT is enlisting retiree volunteers to spend time on the ground working on vital campaigns for governor and state legislators to undo and prevent the damage being advocated by anti-labor forces.

In Florida, unions have united behind former Gov. Charlie Crist to unseat incumbent Gov. Rick Scott, who entered office with a veto-proof Legislature and caused enormous damage to education and to working people. Two years ago, his legislative majorities shrank so that now it is possible to defeat him.

In Nevada and North Carolina, UFT retirees are fighting to make sure they are blue states both nationally and locally.

Here in New York, retirees will staff phone banks being set up in all the boroughs to make calls in support of the UFT’s efforts to flip the state Senate, which would remove obstacles to our education and labor goals.

Perhaps there is also an indefinable something that each of us can do. The president’s loss of support on the heels of so much bad international and national news lately may depress voter turnout and enthusiasm. We need to counter bad news with good news and encourage others to share our commitment to the important political issues that have always motivated us.

The political winds may be in turmoil, but we have navigated them in the past and turned them to our advantage. Let’s do it again!