Vice President Kamala Harris met with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT) at their Washington headquarters on Sept. 16 as her campaign seeks the union’s critical presidential endorsement.
The Teamsters union—with roughly 1.3 million members—is one of the few remaining organized labor groups that has yet to endorse a candidate in this presidential election. Harris, who has been endorsed by unions such as the United Auto Workers, AFL-CIO, and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, is looking to secure the IBT’s support with just 49 days left before the Nov. 5 election.
While the Teamsters have traditionally endorsed Democratic candidates, their president, Sean O'Brien, said the union would wait to endorse whichever candidate holds the best vision for working families.
O'Brien spoke at the Republican National Convention in July but did not make an endorsement.
President Joe Biden met with the Teamsters in March to seek their endorsement after former President Donald Trump did the same in January.
Harris sat down on Sept. 16 with the union’s executive leadership, including O'Brien, to make her pitch to the major labor group.
“The Vice President appreciates the opportunity to meet with IBT leadership and discuss how she has worked for her entire career to support and defend unions, including as part of the most pro-union administration ever,” a Harris campaign spokesperson said in a statement.
Both Harris and Trump are vying for working-class voters. The vice president’s running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, has repeatedly touted his history with the North Star State’s unions in campaign speeches. Harris has deployed similar messaging in her stump speeches.
“Vice President Harris cast the deciding vote for the Butch Lewis Act, which saved over a million pensions, and, as president, she will work hand-in-hand with Congress to pass the [Protecting the Right to Organize] PRO Act,” the spokesperson said.
“We appreciate Vice President Harris taking the time to meet in person with rank-and-file Teamsters. Our members are the backbone of this nation, working in all 50 states and representing every political background. We look forward to having a conversation on the direction of the country and the issues that matter to working people,” he said.
“This time, under our leadership, we brought every single candidate to the table in front of our rank-and-file members and our general executive board, and we’re waiting on Vice President Harris to commit to come meet with us,” the union president said.
“You don’t hire someone unless you give them an interview.
“And you know, this is our opportunity to ask [Harris] about Teamster-specific issues and also labor issues. So until we have that meeting, you know, obviously, we will wait to make that determination.”
While O'Brien has engaged more with Republicans this year than in past election cycles, the union president was critical of Trump’s comments in an interview with X CEO Elon Musk when the former president endorsed firing workers who threaten to strike.
“Firing workers for organizing, striking, and exercising their rights as Americans is economic terrorism,” O’Brien said in a statement.
