Oct 18, 2007 5:51 PM
While the AFT enthusiastically embraced Hillary Clinton as its choice for the Democratic presidential nomination, the Service Employees International Union is sitting on its hands, the outcome of a standoff between SEIU supporters of Clinton, John Edwards and Barack Obama, the three most popular Democrats among SEIU leaders.
“Any one of these candidates would help create a new American dream for workers and their families,” said SEIU Secretary Treasurer Anna Burger.
The union said it will instead let locals make decisions state by state, with the proviso that once an SEIU state affiliate chooses a candidate, the union’s activists from that state will be barred from campaigning in states that have chosen a rival candidate.
The decision is considered particularly bad for Edwards, who has identified closely with labor struggles, actively sought labor support, and peppers his remarks with how he took part in 240 strikes and organizing efforts since his 2004 vice presidential run.
The 1.8-million-member union winnowed the Democratic field down to Clinton, Obama and Edwards after the three were the clear favorites at an SEIU forum in Washington in September.
The candidates’ active pursuit of union endorsements is an indication that while union membership has declined nationwide it is still strong in key states. Union households make up a quarter of voters in general elections — more than a third of the vote in heavily unionized states such as New York and Ohio — and candidates recognize that unions wield formidable political operations through mailing or media campaigns, phone banks and canvassing.
Associated Press, Oct. 8
The Washington Post, Oct. 1