Union Support Grows for Prop 19

The council that oversees the political work of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union endorses Proposition 19 on the November ballot, giving proponents a significant campaign boost.

Proponents of the marijuana legalization initiative on the November ballot won the endorsement Wednesday of the council that oversees the political work of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union in California, as well as one of the union's major locals, giving proponents a significant boost to their campaign.

They also had hoped to win the endorsement of the California Labor Federation, which met this week in San Diego, but decided not to press for a vote and settled instead on persuading the powerful organization to remain neutral — which it did.

"Obviously, I would have liked to have had a full endorsement," said Dan Rush, who oversees special operations for the United Food and Commercial Workers Union, Local 5, and has pushed efforts to gain union support for the measure. But he noted that the neutral stance means the 1,200 member unions are now free to endorse the initiative, and contribute money and campaign volunteers.

"I'm expecting to garner the endorsements of most of the major unions in California over the next several weeks," Rush said.

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