2 weeks Ago By Mataeo Smith
The months-long rumor that the labor union will support either Democrat or Republican for president in 2024 was put to rest on Wednesday when the declared it will not formally endorse candidate. The general executive board of the union released a statement claiming that revealed neither universal nor majority support for Trump or Harris. “The Teamsters thank all candidates for meeting with members face-to-face during our unprecedented roundtables.
Unfortunately, neither major candidate was able to make serious commitments to our union to ensure the interests of working people are always put before Big Business,” Teamsters President Sean O’Brien said in the statement. “We sought commitments from both Trump and Harris not to interfere in critical union campaigns or core Teamsters industries — and to honor our members’ right to strike — but were unable to secure those pledges,” said O’Brien. The Teamsters union is one of the biggest labor unions in the nation, with 1.
3 million members. The union has a long history of supporting Democratic candidates, so their non-endorsement is a departure from that tradition. It's not totally unexpected, though.
When Trump gave a speech on the opening night of the Republican National Convention in July, O'Brien hinted that the union was willing to support him. “As the strongest and most democratic labor union in America, it was vital for our members to drive this endorsement process. Democrats, Republicans, and Independents proudly call our union home, and we have a duty to represent and respect every one of them,” O’Brien wrote.
“We strongly encourage all our members to vote in the upcoming election, and to remain engaged in the political process. But this year, no candidate for President has earned the endorsement of the Teamsters’ International Union,” he wrote. Before the union formally endorsed Trump, findings from a nationwide survey of Teamsters members conducted following the Sept.
10 presidential debate showed that union members overwhelmingly supported Trump over Harris, 58% to 31%. Surveys done during the time that President Joe Biden was still the Democratic nominee yielded results that differ significantly from the most recent ones. Prior to Biden's withdrawal from the election on July 21, Biden had the support of 44.
3% of union members compared to 36.3% of Trump's base. According to the union, neither Trump nor Harris would pledge on Wednesday to refrain from interfering to impose contracts similar to those permitted by the Railway Labor Act.
The statement said that such interference would reduce workers' negotiating power. The union denounced Trump for not committing to vetoing national "right to work" legislation and applauded Harris for promising to sign the PRO Act, which would bolster union protections..
