Republican Lori Chavez-DeRemer picks up 10th union endorsement from Oregon Teamsters

Republican U.S. Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer continues to court organized labor, this week notching an endorsement from Oregon’s Teamsters union in her unopposed primary bid.

Teamsters Joint Council No. 37, which represents roughly 20,000 workers in various industries across Oregon, Idaho and southwest Washington, is Chavez-DeRemer’s 10th union backer. The union hasn’t supported a Republican congressional candidate in more than 20 years.

Chavez-DeRemer said in a statement that her father was a Teamster, and she understands firsthand the benefits that unions provide for working families. 

Republican Chavez-DeRemer courts union endorsements in reelection bid

“That’s why I’ve fought alongside labor unions like Teamsters to protect our nation’s workforce by standing up for workers’ ability to organize, receive livable wages, get fair benefits and enjoy a good retirement,” she said.  “I appreciate Joint Council 37’s support for my campaign, reflecting our shared commitment to empowering Oregon workers. With nearly six months to go until Election Day, I’m thrilled that momentum for my campaign continues to grow.”

While the Teamsters union is endorsing Chavez-DeRemer in the Republican primary, it’s also backing state Rep. Janelle Bynum over 2022 nominee Jamie McLeod-Skinner in the Democratic primary to take on Chavez-DeRemer in the fall. Chavez-DeRemer is the only Republican on a long list of Democratic candidates the union endorsed in statewide, congressional and other races. 

Chavez-DeRemer’s outreach to unions that typically support Democrats is an unusual tactic for Republican members of Congress, but it reflects the power of organized labor in Oregon politics and the precariousness of her position in Congress. She eked out a 2.1-percentage point win in the 5th Congressional District, which voted for Democratic President Joe Biden by 10 points in 2020, and Democrats are dead set on replacing her come November. 

During her first year in Congress, Chavez-DeRemer met with local union leaders and signed onto a letter supporting the Teamsters if they voted to strike during last year’s negotiations with UPS. She also co-sponsored a bipartisan bill that would guarantee public safety workers have the right to collective bargaining and joined Oregon’s Democratic delegation as cosponsors on a bill that would allow tax deductions for paying union dues. 

She has not signed onto the Biden administration’s proposed Richard L. Trumka Protecting the Right to Organize Act, or PRO Act, which would weaken state “right-to-work” laws to allow unions to collect dues from all employees, increase penalties for employers who violate labor law and strengthen employees’ legal rights to join a union. 

Oregon’s largest unions have largely stayed out of the 5th District race so far, though the state’s largest private sector union, United Food and Commercial Workers Local 555, has given both Bynum and McLeod-Skinner its “greenlight” stamp, a non-exclusive indication that a candidate’s values align with the union’s. 

The Oregon Education Association PAC recommended that the National Education Association PAC Council endorse McLeod-Skinner, but the national organization has not picked a candidate in the 5th District. The country’s largest teachers’ union is backing incumbent Democratic Reps. Suzanne Bonamici, Val Hoyle and Andrea Salinas in their re-election bids and Gresham City Councilor Eddy Morales in the contested Democratic primary for the 3rd Congressional District.