For the first time in its history, the Teamsters union has announced it will make no endorsement for president this election year.
The decision comes after the union’s executive board reviewed several months of membership polling on which candidate to endorse. The results of this poll along with several others were published by the union on X.
From April 9 to July 3, nearly 300 Teamsters locals nationwide conducted first-of-their-kind presidential town halls to solicit endorsement preferences from members via straw polls. The in-person voting was held prior to President Joe Biden’s withdrawal from the race. The Teamsters’ polling data shows members backed Biden 44.3% to Donald Trump 36.3%.
Following the Republican National Convention and Biden’s exit, the Teamsters commissioned a national electronic poll of its 1.3 million members, overseen by an independent third party. During a voting window from July 24 to Sept. 15, rank-and-file Teamsters voted 59.6% for the union to endorse Trump, compared to 34% for Democratic candidate Kamala Harris.
In the past week, following the Democratic National Convention and recent presidential debate, the Teamsters commissioned independent polling firm Lake Research Partners to conduct the union’s final national survey. This phone poll resulted in Teamsters selecting Trump by 58% for endorsement over 31% for Harris.
“For the past year, the Teamsters Union has pledged to conduct the most inclusive, democratic, and transparent Presidential endorsement process in the history of our 121-year-old organization — and today we are delivering on that promise to our members,” said Teamsters General President Sean O’Brien in a news release from the union sent before the decision not to endorse was made. “Our members are the union, and their voices and opinions must be at the forefront of everything the Teamsters do. Our final decision around a possible Presidential endorsement will not be made lightly, but you can be sure it will be driven directly by our diverse membership.”
The Teamsters union is made up of over 1.3 million members across the U.S., and is widely considered a powerful voting bloc for politicians to court. While the Teamsters endorsed the Biden-Harris ticket in 2020, the 2024 decision not to endorse comes late in an already tumultuous election season.
The Teamsters made history earlier this summer when O’Brien spoke at the Republican National Convention, marking a first for the usually Democratic-leaning labor union. O’Brien had also requested to speak at the Democratic National Convention a month later but never received a response from the DNC.
Harris eventually agreed to meet with O’Brien and Teamsters members for a roundtable discussion on Monday. The same opportunity to meet with the union was given to then-Democratic candidate Biden and Republican Trump earlier this year.
In a news release published Wednesday afternoon, O’Brien stated that no candidate for president had earned the endorsement of the Teamsters.
“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. 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,” O’Brien said in the release. “Our mission as union representatives is clear: to be honest and upfront, to be inclusive and, above all, to be transparent with our membership. 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. 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.”
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