State Rep. Diane Russell, D-Portland, said she has received wide support and thousands of dollars in donations from supporters of her trip to Wisconsin in protest of a bill that would strip unions of bargaining power.

“The e-mails that I have got are profound. People resonate with the fact that everybody is a worker and wants to be treated fairly on the job,” Russell said Wednesday in a telephone interview. “Every time I check my e-mail I have more donations.”

Russell left Portland by car Sunday with four others, bound for Madison, Wis., where she joined thousands protesting the bill, which Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker says would help close a budget gap.

The bill would limit the ability of unions representing state workers to negotiate pay increases, and require state workers pay more into their pension plans. It also would increase workers’ share of health insurance costs and require annual votes to recertify unions.

Russell called the bill a threat to the rights of workers and the ability of unions to represent them. She said she fears that Maine Gov. Paul LePage may try to make similar cuts as he moves forward with health care and labor reforms.

Russell, who arrived in Wisconsin on Monday night, began her day Tuesday with a trip to Dunkin’ Donuts, where she bought $854 worth of coffee, which she handed out to some of the thousands of protestors outside the state capitol. She also gave protestors hot chocolate, doughnuts and hand warmers.

Russell said she made her way into the capitol Tuesday evening and found throngs of protesters chanting, “This is what democracy looks like.”

“People were so positive and so committed to what was happening. The whole place reverberated,” she said. “Being in the rotunda was one of the most stunning moments in my life.”

Russell said the trip caused her to miss a meeting of the Maine Legislature’s Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee on Wednesday but she did not miss any votes. “I wasn’t physically present, but I was still keeping up on what was happening,” she said. State offices were closed Tuesday.

Russell said she has received calls on her cell phone from Mainers who oppose her trip and are critical of her taking time off to protest in another state. But the vast majority of comments have been positive, she said.

LePage has not tried to rewrite collective bargaining rules, but he has supported so-called right-to-work proposals, which would eliminate the requirement that employees in unionized workplaces pay union dues.

Those efforts lead some opponents to think that LePage may press for more fundamental labor changes.

“The fight in Wisconsin is not here in Maine, but it doesn’t mean the governor can’t instigate it if he wants to,” said Ben Grant, chairman of the Maine Democratic Party.

“There is a national effort to try to weaken and undermine collective bargaining, and parts of that agenda are being pushed in Maine,” said Matt Schlobohm of the Maine AFL-CIO.

Russell has documented her trip on a blog, solidaritywisconsin.wordpress.com, and is accepting donations online. She also has been updating her Twitter account and Facebook page.

As of Wednesday, she said, she had received about $3,000 in donations from Mainers and supporters in other states, including Indiana and Wisconsin. She even received money from a donor in Paris, France.

Russell’s trip has attracted attention from national media outlets, including The Huffington Post.

Staff Writer Jonathan Hemmerdinger can be reached at 791-6316 or at: jhemmerdinger@mainetoday.com