Firefighters union skips 2024 endorsement, won't back Harris or Trump

Joey Garrison, USA TODAY
Updated ·2 min read

WASHINGTON − The International Association of Fire Fighters said Thursday it won't endorse a candidate in the 2024 presidential election in a slap to Vice President Kamala Harris, who has touted her labor support on the campaign trail.

The union, which represents more than 350,000 firefighters and other emergency workers, was the first union to endorse President Joe Biden during the 2020 election.

In a statement, the IAFF said the union's executive board "by a margin of 1.2%" voted Thursday not to endorse either former President Donald Trump or Harris.

"The IAFF Executive Board determined that we are better able to advocate for our members and make progress on the issues that matter to them if we, as a union, are standing shoulder-to-shoulder," the IAFF said in a statement. "This decision, which we took very seriously, is the best way to preserve and strengthen our unity."

Minnesota Governor and 2024 Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Walz speaks at the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) Convention at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center on August 28, 2024 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Joseph Prezioso / AFP) (Photo by JOSEPH PREZIOSO/AFP via Getty Images) ORG XMIT: 776194922 ORIG FILE ID: 2168098505

More: Teamsters union skips 2024 presidential endorsement, won't back Harris or Trump

"We encourage our members – and all eligible voters – to get out and make their voices heard in the upcoming election," the statement continued.

The non-endorsement from the firefighters union comes after the International Brotherhood of Teamsters last month also opted not to endorse in the 2024 election for the first time since 1996.

"This is another devastating blow to Kamala Harris’ failing campaign," Karoline Leavitt, the Trump campaign's national press secretary, said in a statement.

The Harris and Trump campaigns had both courted the support of the firefighters union, with Harris' running-mate Tim Walz and Trump's running-mate JD Vance both speaking at the annual IAFF convention last month in Boston. Vance was loudly booed by union members in the crowd as he spoke.

Even with the firefighters union and Teamsters staying neutral in the election, Harris has the backing of nine of the nation's 10 largest unions including United Auto Workers, the AFL-CIO and United Steelworkers.

Reach Joey Garrison on X, formerly Twitter, @joeygarrison.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Firefighters union skips 2024 endorsement in a blow to Harris

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