Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) has worked hard to showcase himself as one of the most pro-union Republicans in Congress, but his labor support may not earn him one of the most coveted endorsements of all.
The Missouri Republican has rallied with striking auto workers and was likely hoping to rely on union votes in his reelection efforts. However, it looks like he won’t have the support of the United Auto Workers, a prominent auto workers union, come November.
“Josh Hawley calling himself pro-worker is a total joke,” Fred Jamison, president of the UAW Region 4 Midwest States Cap Council, said in a statement to Business Insider. “There is only one candidate in this U.S. Senate race who has earned the trust of Missouri autoworkers, and that’s Lucas Kunce.”
Hawley isn’t completely pro-union, which could explain the UAW’s apprehension to back him over his opponent. He opposed the Protecting the Right to Organize Act, which is supposed to strengthen workers’ ability to form unions, and opposed public sector unions, which contain teachers and police officers.
“I’m not a huge fan of the PRO Act,” Hawley told the same outlet in September. “My worry would be that it might, you know, hurt workers more than it helps.”
Lucas Kunce, Hawley’s likely Democratic opponent in November, supports the PRO Act. He still has to beat off several party challengers in the state’s Aug. 6 primary, however.
“I’m honored to have the support of UAW in this race,” Kunce said in a statement. “The only way we’ll put Missouri and America first in the next generation of industry is by investing in and empowering workers like them. In the U.S. Senate, I’ll fight like hell for them. Let’s pass the PRO Act and Make S*** In America Again!”
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Missouri has 255,000 union workers as of 2023, but Hawley is unlikely to lose his seat. Hawley has outraised his likely opponent by about $13 million with a $2 million cash-on-hand advantage, and the Cook Political Report rates his race as “Solid Republican.” A poll conducted in March saw Hawley with a 14-point lead over Kunce.
The Washington Examiner reached out to Hawley for comment.