Two major Democratic gubernatorial candidates made their pitch for labor support on Wednesday at the AFL-CIO's political convention, but neither appears likely to have the union federation's support in the primary.
State Sen. Dina Titus spoke to the union's political arm, the Committee on Political Education, in the morning and Henderson Mayor Jim Gibson spoke in the afternoon. Several other Democratic candidates spoke at the event.
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The delegates at the event are scheduled to vote today on candidate endorsements. The federation's central council interviews candidates and makes recommendations to the political convention.
The council has recommended that the convention delegates vote to endorse Democrats in several races. However, for races in which there is more than one pro-labor candidate, the council prefers to let the candidates fight it out in the primary before throwing the collective's weight behind one.
The council recommended no endorsement in two prominent races: the gubernatorial race; and the contest for Clark County Commission District E, in which Democratic Assemblywoman Chris Giunchigliani is challenging longtime Commissioner Myrna Williams.
"In the case of the governor's race, we have two very strong Democratic contenders," the head of the state AFL-CIO, Danny Thompson, said. "It's fair to say that whoever comes out of the primary we'll support."
Withholding endorsement until after the primary will allow the federation to be unified behind the winning candidate going into November's general election, Thompson said.
He pointed to the 1982 Senate race, which featured a hard-fought Democratic primary between incumbent Howard Cannon and Congressman Jim Santini. The two, he said, "so polarized each other's camp that when Cannon beat Santini, Santini's supporters refused to support Cannon." That, he said, allowed Republican Chic Hecht to win the general election.
Each of the about 120 Nevada AFL-CIO member unions votes on endorsement recommendations today, with their votes weighted according to how many members each has. It takes a two-thirds vote to endorse a candidate.
With 60,000 members, the Culinary union comprises almost half of the state AFL-CIO's membership, and a lack of enthusiasm from Culinary for a pre-primary endorsement is thought to be behind the federation's reluctance.
Culinary's political director, Pilar Weiss, said the union made up mostly of Strip casino workers was concentrating its political resources toward races it sees as most important. Those include the contest for County Commission District F, in which Susan Brager, a Democrat and member of the Clark County School Board, is challenging incumbent Republican Commissioner Lynette Boggs McDonald, Weiss said.
"There's an interest, I think, in the whole labor community ... in wanting to focus on changing the electoral map in the general election," she said.
Titus used her speech to roll out a platform on economic development. Her plan, she said, would create higher-paying jobs in Nevada, a state whose growth has been predicated on availability of employment unequalled in the nation.
"Leading the nation in job growth is no longer good enough," Titus said in a statement. "We must lead it in the creation of better-paying jobs that guarantee a high quality of life for Nevadans."
Titus said her proposals to encourage companies to provide better wages and more benefits, including health insurance and on-site day care, would help Nevadans deal with rising housing and energy prices.
Titus' proposals also include establishing a state venture capital fund for start-up companies, an initiative to attract telecommunications upgrades in rural areas and strengthening education at both the K-12 and university levels.
Gibson began his speech to the convention with an anecdote about his days as a criminal-defense attorney, when he defended a labor official against federal embezzlement charges.
Benard Hawkins, then the president of Laborers Local 872, was indicted in 1984 along with the union's secretary-treasurer, George Osley Jr., on charges of using union funds to build Osley's home and fund both men's union re-election campaigns.
But Hawkins, who blamed Osley for the missing funds, was innocent and was acquitted on all charges, while Osley was convicted, Gibson said.
Gibson cited other efforts he's been involved in as evidence of his support for labor, including resisting the "ring around the valley" anti-sprawl proposal, which he said would have driven up housing prices, and supporting union-only labor agreements for major projects.
Gibson presented himself as the only candidate capable of beating Republican front-runner Jim Gibbons in the general election. "I have been there for working men and women, and I will beat Jim Gibbons with your support," he said.
Both Gibson and Titus boast union endorsements. Gibson's supporters include the laborers whose leader he once defended as well as delivery drivers and bricklayers. Titus' endorsements include firefighters, steelworkers, state employees and electrical workers.
