The International Brotherhood of Teamsters declined to endorse a presidential candidate on Wednesday after releasing internal polling that showed a majority of its members supported former President Donald Trump.
It’s the first time in nearly three decades that the union has not endorsed a presidential candidate.
The decision from the union comes after its board and president, Sean O’Brien, met with both Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris. O’Brien also spoke at the Republican National Convention in July, though his speech largely shied away from partisan politics. He said he asked both major parties for a speaking slot at their convention but only the Republicans accepted.
“At the end of the day, the Teamsters are not interested if you have a “D,” “R” or an “I” next to your name. We want to know one thing,” O’Brien said at the RNC. “What are you doing to help American workers?”
Harris has already earned the endorsement of other major unions, including the American Federation of Teachers and United Auto Workers. But an endorsement from the Teamsters, which counts 1.3 million members across a variety of industries and is heavily represented in critical swing states such as Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania – all of which went for Trump in 2016 before backing Joe Biden four years later – would have been a crucial get for either candidate, though it doesn’t mean its members would vote in lockstep with the union’s wishes.
Ahead of their decision, the Teamsters shared internal data showing that a majority of members supported Trump over Harris. According to an electronic member poll that was initiated after President Joe Biden withdrew from the race, about 60% of members believed the union should endorse Trump while 34% supported Harris. About 6% said they supported another candidate.
A Teamsters town hall straw poll taken before Biden exited the race showed he had 44% of members’ support compared with Trump’s 36%. That survey also included Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who garnered about 6% of members’ support. Kennedy has since suspended his campaign and endorsed Trump.
The Teamsters endorsed Trump’s opponents, Hillary Clinton in 2016 and Biden in 2020, but those endorsements came under previous leadership. While union members are thought of as a traditionally Democratic voting bloc, Trump has been working to make inroads among rank-and-file members.
Biden had long enjoyed strong union support. He became the first sitting president to visit a picket line last September and frequently employed some version of the line, “The middle class built America, and unions built the middle class” in many of his stump speeches during his time as candidate. Harris has also begun using that line.
But Harris does not have the same long history with unions and working people as the president.
Her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, is himself a former union member as a public school teacher.
Source: CNN News
0 Comments