When Sen. Barack Obama campaigned in Nevada two weeks ago, he scored what his campaign described as a political coup: the backing of Maria Elena Durazo, the head of the powerful 800,000-member Los Angeles County Federation of Labor.
But while the endorsement gave a psychological boost to Obama, it created some blowback for Durazo, considered Southern California's leading voice on labor issues.
Durazo described her endorsement as a personal one, going so far as to take time off from her job to campaign for Obama. Yet some in the federation have openly questioned her handling of the matter, saying it showed a lack of commitment to the federation's differing factions.
Officials with Service Employees International Union in California, which backed former Sen. John Edwards (D-North Carolina) months ago, learned of Durazo's decision by reading the newspaper. And Tyrone Freeman, the head of SEIU Local 6434, accused Durazo of using the federation's hard-won clout to advance her own political agenda.
"It's become part of a pattern, and it raises questions about her ability to lead, to make the decisions that make the labor unions united," said Freeman, who called Durazo's handling of the matter "slick and undignified."
The federation has enormous pull in Los Angeles County, helping to elect federal, state and local politicians at a time when unions in other parts of the country are struggling to regain influence. The federation has already vowed to make its candidate for county supervisor, state Sen. Mark Ridley-Thomas, (D-Los Angeles), the winner in this year's election to replace Supervisor Yvonne B. Burke, who is stepping down. Freeman's union represents 190,000 long-term healthcare workers across the state, many of them based in Los Angeles County. And in recent weeks, complaints about Durazo also have come from the building trade unions, which represent just over 10% of the labor coalition.
In labor circles, Durazo broke with tradition by endorsing Obama, side-stepping established rules that require county and state labor councils to back only those candidates chosen by the national AFL-CIO. Those leaders have yet to make endorsements in the presidential race.
Asked about the complaints Tuesday, federation spokeswoman Mary Gutierrez described the accusations as an internal matter. But earlier this month, Durazo acknowledged that some union members felt her endorsement left the mistaken impression that the county federation had lined up behind Obama.
