DETROIT — U.S. presidential candidate Kamala Harris clinched the United Auto Workers‘ endorsement last week, but a tough task still lies ahead: earning the support of its nearly 400,000 members.
Democrats have been energized by Harris’ candidacy after President Joe Biden ended his re-election campaign following a poor June debate. Polls show her with a small national lead over Republican Donald Trump for the Nov. 5 election, but securing UAW members’ votes in the battleground state of Michigan could be key in what is expected to be a tight race with the former president.
Michigan households with a union member have been more likely than those nationwide to vote for a Democrat in the last three U.S. presidential elections, according to polling firm Edison Research, and in the state they lean to Democrats more than non-union households.
But Trump has tried to win over union members and other blue-collar workers nationwide. The head of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Sean O’Brien, gave a speech at the Republican National Convention last month, although the union has yet to endorse a candidate.
Harris met with union workers in Detroit on Wednesday and held a rally with UAW President Shawn Fain, who has praised her record on fighting corporate price-gouging, profiteering and unfair trade deals. Fain has also spoken highly of Harris’ vice-presidential pick, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz.
“We know whose side Kamala Harris is on and we know whose side Donald Trump is on. Kamala Harris has stood with working people, Donald Trump stands with the billionaire class and the corporate class,” Fain said Monday on a “Progressives for Harris” fundraiser livestream.
In the 2020 presidential race, 62% of Michigan households with a union member voted for Biden, helping him win the state. By contrast, union households split 53% to 40% for Hillary Clinton in 2016, when she narrowly lost the state and the national race.
In presidential elections dating to at least 2008, UAW member support has consistently exceeded 60% for the Democratic candidate, and never surpassed 35% for the Republican ticket, according to a union official. All signs indicate it will hold for 2024, the official added.
“I see a lot of energy and re-engagement in the process” among UAW Democrats since Harris launched her campaign, said Todd Dunn, president of a large UAW local in Kentucky.
The UAW’s executive board, not the larger membership, votes to endorse a candidate….
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at Autoblog…