Image via Wikipedia

By Steven Allen Adams
steven@westvirginiawatchdog.org

In his second union endorsement since winning the May 14 primary, Senate President Earl Ray Tomblin, the acting governor and Democratic nominee in the Oct. 4 special election for governor of West Virginia, received the endorsement of Teamsters Local 175 Wednesday.

In making the endorsement, Ken Hall, president of Teamsters Local 175, cited Tomblin’s 36 years of experience in the West Virginia Legislature and his fiscally responsible policies while serving as Senate Finance Committee chairman, Senate President, and now as Acting Governor.

“While Tomblin has not always agreed with the Teamsters on every issue, he has always given us a fair hearing and has committed to continue to do so as governor,” Hall said in a press release. “Tomblin is committed to helping our middle class in West Virginia. He is clearly the best choice for workers in this upcoming election.”

The endorsement by Teamsters Local 175 makes the second union endorsement for Tomblin, and third endorsement so far during this special election. Tomblin was endorsed by the West Virginia State Building and Construction Trades Council last month, and the National Rifle Association last week.

“I greatly appreciate the support of the Teamsters and their hardworking members,” Tomblin said. “As governor, I will continue to create jobs and responsibly lower taxes to make life better for our state’s hardworking families.”

During the primary most of the labor endorsements went to House Speaker Rick Thompson (D-Wayne), including endorsements from SEIU District 1199, West Virginia AFL-CIO, the West Virginia Chapter of the American Federation of Teachers, and the West Virginia Education Association. Tomblin defeated Thompson and four other Democrats to secure the Democratic Party’s nomination for governor. Tomblin carried 40 percent of the vote, with Thompson only getting 24 percent.

This year Tomblin pushed for a 1 percent reduction in the food tax, approved across-the-board pay raises for public workers, and funded the state’s public workplace OSHA program for the first time. During the special session Aug. 1-5 Tomblin approved of a phase-out of the food tax by 2013 and raised the Rainy Day Fund threshold from 10 percent to 13 percent of the general revenue fund.

“(Acting) Gov. Tomblin is pleased to have the support of these hardworking West Virginians who appreciate his efforts to responsibly reduce taxes and create more jobs,” said Chris Stadelman, spokesperson for the Tomblin campaign. “This is further evidence of Earl Ray Tomblin’s track record of leadership and working cooperatively with a wide variety of our state’s residents.”

Tomblin is running against Republican Bill Maloney, the Mountain Party’s Bob Henry Baber, American Third Position‘s Harry Bertram, and independent candidate Marla Ingels.

Related articles

• WVGOV: It’s Official – House Redistricting Special Session Starts Tomorrow (with document) (westvirginia.watchdog.org)
• WVGOV: Tomblin Receives NRA Endorsement, Maloney Launches TV Ads (with video) (westvirginia.watchdog.org)
• WatchBlog: Tomblin Not at Fault for Redistricting Do-Over (westvirginia.watchdog.org)