Some local Teamsters groups announce Harris endorsements after national union declines to do so
The main national body of the Teamsters union may have declined to endorse a candidate for the 2024 presidential election, but that hasn't stopped local units from doing so.
The main national body of the Teamsters union may have declined to endorse a candidate for the 2024 presidential election, but that hasn't stopped local units from doing so.
According to the Kamala Harris campaign, almost two dozen local Teamsters unions and joint councils representing approximately 1 million Teamster-affiliated workers have endorsed the vice president in recent days, including ones in the key battleground states of Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
The support comes as the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBOT) said this week that it was breaking with precedent by not issuing an official presidential endorsement. The teamsters have generally backed Democrats for president in recent races.
“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 General President Sean O’Brien said in a statement. O'Brien spoke at the Republican National Convention and has stated he did not receive a similar invite from the Democrats.
Harris enjoys broad support from other union groups including the AFL-CIO, the nation's largest labor group, the Service Employees International Union and the Culinary Workers Union. These are traditionally Democratic-aligned groups with a diverse set of workers.
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