'We are in no rush.' Union endorsements for 2020 candidates have been scarce and are likely to remain so in the months ahead.
Joe Biden has nabbed the only significant labor endorsement so far, capturing the support of the International Association of Fire Fighters. Photo: Andrew Harnik/Associated Press By Ken Thomas and Michelle Hackman May 25, 2019 8:00 a.m. ET WASHINGTON—National labor unions are taking their time sizing up 2020 candidates after some members criticized their leaders’ 2016 endorsement decisions as rushed.
Membership has declined since the 1980s but organized labor remains a potent constituency in Democratic politics, thanks to millions of dollars in contributions unions can steer and armies of volunteers they can mobilize to knock on doors and canvass members. In total, labor unions spent a record $240 million in 2016 in support of Mrs. Clinton. In the 2018 midterm elections, they spent $161 million to support Democrats in congressional races.
Democrats expect President Trump to appeal to union members next year in labor-heavy battleground states he won in 2016, including Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin—all of which President Obama won twice. When Mr. Schaitberger addressed union members at Mr. Biden’s first campaign event in Pittsburgh last month, he said the former vice president would connect “with those workers who didn’t believe the last Democratic nominee heard them.
A smaller union, the National Union of Healthcare Workers, which has played an active role in California, is planning a presidential candidate forum in September in Anaheim, Calif. After the event, which will be live-streamed in English and Spanish, the union’s members will vote on the 2020 endorsement.Other unions are planning to hold large candidate forums, allowing their members to question presidential aspirants personally.
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