IBT Declines To Endorse 2024 Presidential Candidates

On Wednesday the 18th of September, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters made an announcement that they would not be endorsing the Trump/Vance Republican ticket, nor the Harris/Walz Democrat ticket in the 2024 US presidential elections. This is the first time since the 1996 [1] presidential election, (Dole vs Clinton), they’ve withheld an endorsement. The question is how should we take this information? To answer this, it’s important to begin with the “why.”

The IBT had begun conducting polling and roundtables from members for the last year, finding the data to be inconclusive regarding a preference to either candidate. Although in two independent polls, Trump came out ahead of Harris by a substantial margin, Biden came out over Trump very concretely. Since the methodology is currently unavailable, it’s hard to isolate whether it’s an issue with the Harris ticket in contrast to Trump, or whether it’s the methodology used by the third party polling institutions hired, since the first round of polling was conducted by in-person voting with town halls occurring. [2] In addition to the polling data, the IBT cited other concerns, namely that neither candidate would commit to protecting the right to strike, an issue that was pressed after the Biden administration forced a contract on the railway unions via the Railway Labor Act, as well as the issue of “Right To Work” legislation supported mainly by Republicans (in contrast to “The Pro Act” currently supported by social democrats and most unions.) [3]

Is this indication that the IBT leadership has taken up a proletarian approach to politics? While they have refrained from selecting to endorse either bourgeois candidate, this doesn’t at all mean the Teamsters are done with bourgeois politics. IBT President Sean O’Brien himself has been very flirtatious with Trump’s campaign and spoke at the Republican National Convention [4] while not doing the same at the Democratic National Convention. Furthermore, multiple Teamster locals (some under the banner of a broader Teamsters Against Trump campaign,) Joint Councils, Teamster Retirees, and the Teamsters National Black Caucus, all have given Harris their endorsement with no similar movement occurring for Trump despite many taking to the internet to express their disapproval of the decision not to endorse Trump outright. [5] Lastly, as Sean O’Brien said himself at the RNC:

“The Teamsters are here to say we aren’t beholden to anyone or any party. We will create an agenda and work with a bipartisan coalition ready to accomplish something real for the American worker.” [6]

With all the evidence in front of us, why should we have any reason to doubt O’Brien himself? We can safely conclude that the IBT is trying to put itself in a position where instead of simply throwing its weight behind the Democrats, it seeks concessions between both the major parties in the U.S. and despite organized responses from reformist elements, this is hardly an indication of any sort of politics that seeks an independent path from the bourgeois parties. In fact, the Teamsters still remain beholden to them, placing their membership as an army of voters to be rallied to the highest bidder.

The working class has no interest in supporting Trump or Harris, but in carving in its own path. Not one of taking concessions from capital, but one of revolution. O’Brien’s IBT is not one of ending capital’s rule over the working class, let alone the American worker, but of working in lockstep with capital, adjusting the rules the trade union movement should have to abide by and operate under to best facilitate this coalition. The criticisms of these candidates begin with demanding the right to strike be protected and legal concessions for the trade unions, and end there. No criticism of the the ongoing genocide in Palestine, the inter-imperialist conflict in Ukraine, the rising cost of food since the pandemic, or even the pittance of an “opportunity economy” as an insult to the struggling worker, all of these criticisms are put aside so that, maybe, we’ll make organizing trade unions in the acceptable bourgeois legal purview a little easier.

Finally we can answer our question. As has been stated ad nauseam, and further clarified in this article, both Harris and Trump represent another four years of capitalist class rule and anti-worker governance. Thus, declining to endorse either campaign is correct. We must openly critique the IBT and Teamsters leadership, agitating amongst workers that we mustn’t just be at the whims of concessions by the oppressing classes, but break from the bourgeois parties entirely. Lenin put it best by saying,

“Do not rely upon the state,’ rely only upon the power of your class. The state is an organization of the class in power. Do not rely upon promises, rely upon the power of union and upon the consciousness of your class.” [7]

We must build a political vehicle for workers to facilitate this. One that may organize within the trade unions to develop revolutionary fever amongst the workers, and combat capitalist-imperialist politics with socialist-communist politics.

Sources:

[1] Williams, M., Tausche, K., & Liptak, K. (2024, September 19). Teamsters won’t endorse in presidential race after releasing internal polling showing most members support Trump | CNN politics. CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2024/09/18/politics/teamsters-will-not-endorse-us-president

[2] Deniz, K., & Deniz, K. (2024, September 18). Teamsters Release Presidential Endorsement Polling Data. International Brotherhood of Teamsters. https://teamster.org/2024/09/teamsters-release-presidential-endorsement-polling-data/

[3] Deniz, K., & Deniz, K. (2024, September 18). Teamsters: No Endorsement for U.S. President. International Brotherhood of Teamsters. https://teamster.org/2024/09/teamsters-no-endorsement-for-u-s-president/

[4] Wolf, Z. B. (2024, July 16). Why a union president crossed partisan lines for a starring role at Trump’s RNC | CNN Politics. CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2024/07/16/politics/teamsters-president-rnc-what-matters

[5] Nichols, J. (2024, September 20). Kamala Harris Is Winning the Teamsters Endorsements That Really Matter. The Nation. https://www.thenation.com/article/politics/kamala-harris-teamsters-endorsements-election/

[6] Rafi. (2024, July 18). Was Teamster boss’ RNC speech a watershed moment for unions or betrayal of labor? The Week. https://theweek.com/politics/republican-convention-rnc-teamsters-union-sean-obrien

[7] Lenin and the Trade Union Movement. (n.d.). Www.marxists.org. https://www.marxists.org/archive/lozovsky/1924/14.htm