Teamsters Won't Endorse a Presidential Candidate After Member Polls Split

The fourth-largest union in the country said its member polls showed "no majority support" for Kamala Harris and "no universal support" for Donald Trump.

Member Polls: Before the announcement on Wednesday, the Teamsters released results from three rounds of member polling:

• Straw polls at union meetings conudcted from April to July, when President Joe Biden was still in the race, showed Biden at 44.3% and Trump at 36.3%.
• Electronic polls conducted from July to September showed Trump at 59.6% and Harris at 34%.
• Phone polls conducted September 9-15 showed Trump at 58% and Harris at 31%.

For Context: The Teamsters endorsed both Republicans and Democrats in the 20th century, but endorsed Democrats in all of the past 6 elections starting in 2000.

Key Quote: Citing meetings with each major candidate, Teamsters President Sean O'Brien said the union "was left with few commitments on top Teamsters issues from either former President Donald Trump or Vice President Kamala Harris," having unsuccessfully "sought commitments from both... not to interfere in critical union campaigns or core Teamsters industries—and to honor our members’ right to strike."

How the Media Covered It: Headlines from Breitbart (Right bias) and Washington Examiner (Lean Right) highlighted Trump winning matchups against Harris by "nearly 60%," a "nearly 2-to-1 margin." Breitbart noted that Harris had "snubbed" Teamsters president Sean O'Brien at the Democratic National Convention after having spoken at the Republican National Convention. Politico (Lean Left) reported that two Joint Councils representing West Coast areas broke with national leadership to endorse Harris.