Tuesday is the deadline for ballots to be received in the runoff election that will determine the UAW’s future president, but it was already clear days beforehand that more union members had returned their ballots than in the first go-around in the fall.
As of Friday, the independent UAW monitor had already received 139,615 ballots, topping the total of 106,790, not all of which were deemed valid, returned for the initial election.
That’s 32,825 more ballots returned already than during the election last year where criticism about the low level of participation prompted one candidate, Will Lehman, to file a federal lawsuit, which was later dismissed, seeking to extend the deadline.
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Ballot counting in the runoff is scheduled to begin on Wednesday. The deadline for ballots to be received at the designated location, the U.S. Post Office in Dayton, Ohio, is set for 4 p.m. Tuesday.
The runoff election features six candidates and three positions — Ray Curry and Shawn Fain competing for the presidency, Tim Bressler and Chuck Browning seeking the remaining vice presidential spot and Lauren Farrell and Daniel Vicente in the race for the Region 9 director seat.
In the earlier contest, no candidates secured a majority of votes for president or Region 9 director, and only two of the vice presidential hopefuls — Mike Booth and Rich Boyer — had enough votes to claim their seats outright.
Most of the candidates have run on opposing slates. Fain and Vicente are part of UAW Members United; Curry, Browning and Farrell are on the Curry Solidarity Team.
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Regardless of what happens in the upcoming count, the election process marks a major change in how the UAW selects its leaders. The election is a result of the agreement reached between the federal government and the union following the fallout from the long-running corruption scandal that sent former union officials and ex-auto executives to prison for misusing worker training funds, among other misdeeds.
Union members were given the choice of how to select their leaders and opted for the current direct election process. Delegates at last year’s UAW convention in Detroit nominated candidates for the election, which was a departure from the past when delegates would have picked the leaders at union conventions.
Marick Masters, a business professor and labor expert at Wayne State University who has been watching the election process closely, said the election results should have a profound impact going forward.
“This is watershed moment for the UAW. There is a chance that the dissident faction represented by the (UAW Members United slate) may take a majority of the International Executive Board if they win two of the three outstanding elections this week … but regardless of the outcome, the dissidents have captured enough of the International Executive Board to affect greatly the 2023 bargaining and also to bring about a cultural change within the UAW,” said Masters, referring to contract talks scheduled to get underway this year between the UAW and General Motors, Ford and Stellantis, which includes the former Chrysler-related brands.
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The winners, however, will have major challenges ahead, Masters said, pointing to structural problems in the auto industry and the difficulty for the UAW of organizing in areas where it has struggled to date and in new areas involving electrification. He also referenced the work needed to unite the union, to prepare for bargaining, to comply with the independent monitor and to rebuild the confidence of the public.
Regarding the current runoff election, Masters said he expects a close contest. He’d give the advantage based on organization during the campaign to the Curry-led slate and the advantage from an enthusiasm standpoint to the Fain-led slate.
Contact Eric D. Lawrence: elawrence@freepress.com. Become a subscriber.