The International Brotherhood of Teamsters has decided not to endorse a candidate for the upcoming presidential election, marking a departure from decades of union tradition and diverging from the stance of many other major labor unions.
According to a statement from the Teamsters executive board, extensive nationwide member polling and nearly a year of rank-and-file roundtable interviews with all major presidential candidates revealed minimal commitments on key Teamsters issues from either former President Donald Trump or Vice President Kamala Harris. Consequently, there was no definitive support among union members for either party’s nominee.
This development poses a setback for Vice President Kamala Harris, who participated in a roundtable discussion with Teamsters leadership on Monday. An internal electronic poll released earlier on Wednesday indicated that nearly 60% of Teamsters members wanted leadership to support Trump. A separate phone poll showed 58% support for Trump compared to 31% for Harris.
Despite Harris receiving endorsements from other significant labor groups, including the United Auto Workers, AFL-CIO, National Education Association, American Federation of Teachers, and the Culinary Union in Nevada, Teamsters chose not to align with any presidential candidate.
Harris’s spokesperson, Lauren Hitt, emphasized the vice president’s long-standing support for organized labor, mentioning that various Teamsters locals across the country have endorsed Harris. Hitt asserted that, if elected president, Harris would prioritize the interests of Teamsters members.
Conversely, the Trump campaign highlighted the internal polling results, claiming that the majority of Teamsters members favored Trump’s return to the White House, despite the union’s executive board opting not to make a formal endorsement.
Teamsters President Sean O’Brien detailed that this year’s endorsement process involved numerous small meetings at local Teamsters branches across the nation. Members were encouraged to share their opinions on endorsement preferences using a bar-code system on their smartphones.
Union workers are a critical demographic for both Democrats and Republicans, especially in key swing states such as Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Nevada. AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler noted that one in five voters in swing states is a union worker.
Historically, the Teamsters have endorsed every Democratic presidential nominee since Bill Clinton. However, O’Brien made headlines in July by becoming the first Teamsters president to speak at the Republican National Convention.
During his speech at the convention, O’Brien emphasized the union’s focus on candidate actions rather than party affiliations, expressing support for Trump and urging Republicans to adopt a more labor-friendly agenda. However, Trump’s comments supporting the firing of striking workers later led to the United Auto Workers filing federal labor charges against him and Elon Musk.
The Teamsters’ internal polling between April and July showed varying levels of support for both Trump and Biden. Harris, however, gained only 34% support in the electronic poll conducted between July and September. Some local Teamsters branches and the Teamsters National Black Caucus have endorsed Harris since she entered the race.
The Teamsters leadership highlighted the lack of key labor commitments from both candidates in their announcement. Harris committed to signing the PRO Act and opposed “right to work” laws, which leadership deemed critical. Conversely, Trump did not assure that he would veto national “right to work” laws.
Harley Shaiken, a labor analyst at UC Berkeley, criticized the Teamsters’ decision to remain neutral, calling it a significant mistake given the importance of the upcoming presidential election.