They won’t be endorsing Harris.
On Thursday, the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) announced that it would not be endorsing a candidate for president in the upcoming election, a decision that particularly impacts Vice President Kamala Harris. This union had previously been the first to support Joe Biden’s campaign in 2020.
In a statement, IAFF President Edward A. Kelly revealed that the executive board voted against an endorsement by a narrow margin of 1.2%. He explained that the board believes it can better advocate for its members’ interests if the union remains united. “This decision, which we took very seriously, is the best way to preserve and strengthen our unity,” he stated.
The IAFF represents over 350,000 firefighters, emergency medical personnel, and rescue workers across the U.S. and Canada. Both presidential candidates made direct appeals to the union’s members at a convention in Boston in August, with Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and Ohio Senator JD Vance speaking at the event. Harris had also addressed union members earlier this year at a legislative conference in Washington, D.C., before Biden withdrew from the race.
While the IAFF quickly endorsed Biden in 2020, it had opted not to take a stance in the previous election cycle in 2016. During that time, then-President Donald Trump criticized the union’s leadership on Twitter, claiming they favored Democrats despite the support he received from rank-and-file members. Trump’s campaign has since called the IAFF’s recent decision “another crushing blow to Kamala,” noting that the union is the second high-profile organization to withhold endorsement from Harris, following the Teamsters’ recent non-endorsement.
In September, the Teamsters union, which has over one million members, also chose not to endorse a presidential candidate. However, a survey released by the Teamsters indicated that 60% of their rank-and-file members preferred Trump over Harris, with only 34% backing the vice president. Despite these setbacks, Harris has received endorsements from significant unions like the AFL-CIO and the United Auto Workers. During the Boston convention, both Walz and Vance discussed their views on unions and their commitment to supporting workers’ rights, highlighting the ongoing political dynamics leading up to the election.
