The Teamsters have declined to endorse a candidate for U.S. president, the union said Wednesday.
The union said in a statement it was "left with few commitments on top Teamsters issues from either former President Donald Trump or Vice President Kamala Harris — and found no definitive support among members for either party’s nominee."
In repeated polls of its members, the Teamsters found there was no majority support for Harris and no universal support for Trump, though Trump held an advantage over Harris.
Teamsters General President Sean O’Brien said the union had asked both Trump and Harris to commit to respecting Teamsters strikes and to avoiding interference in union business — but it was "unable to secure those pledges."
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The Teamsters have endorsed Democratic presidential candidates since 1996. This election has represented a departure from that history: the 1.3-million-member union donated $45,000 to both the Democratic and Republican National Conventions this cycle, and President Sean O'Brien addressed the Republican National Convention.
Presidential campaigns react
Trump didn't receive an endorsement from the union, but he said he considered the support from union voters as an "honor."
They're not going to endorse the Democrats, that's a big thing," Trump said during a campaign appearance Wednesday. "It was always automatic that Democrats get the Teamsters, and they said 'We won't endorse the Democrats this year.'"
The Harris campaign similarly touted support from within the organization — even if it wasn't formal.
“While Donald Trump says striking workers should be fired, Vice President Harris has literally walked the picket line and stood strong with organized labor for her entire career,” Harris campaign spokesperson Lauren Hitt said in a statement. “The Vice President’s strong union record is why Teamsters locals across the country have already endorsed her — alongside the overwhelming majority of organized labor.”
