For generations, labor unions were a reliable pillar of Democratic politics, delivering both votes and campaign cash. But a growing number of unions are now splitting their support, funneling more resources to Republican candidates — including Pennsylvania U.S. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick.
While Democrats have traditionally benefited from unions’ largesse, former President Donald Trump’s populist rhetoric has helped reshape that alliance, drawing more blue-collar workers — and their union leaders — into the Republican fold.
“Under President Trump, paychecks are growing, jobs are coming back, and the American worker finally has a champion in the White House,” said James Markley, a spokesman for the Pennsylvania GOP. “Democrats abandoned the working class a long time ago in favor of their woke, elitist agenda. It doesn’t surprise me that union members are shifting to the GOP, because we’re the party that actually delivers for them.”
The International Brotherhood of Teamsters, one of the nation’s most influential unions, released a poll in September 2024 showing 59.6 percent of its members wanted union officials to endorse Trump, while only 34 percent supported Vice President Kamala Harris. In a major break from tradition, the union declined to endorse either presidential candidate in 2024 — the first time in decades — and Teamsters President Sean O’Brien delivered a speech at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.
That new openness to GOP candidates is showing up in political donations. The Teamsters’ political action committee, Democrat, Republican, Independent Voter Education (D.R.I.V.E.), gave $5,000 to the National Republican Congressional Committee earlier this year, along with $62,000 in contributions to nearly two dozen Republican congressional candidates. Among the recipients: Fitzpatrick, who received $2,500.
Neither Fitzpatrick nor a Teamsters spokesperson responded to requests for comment Monday.
Fitzpatrick, a five-term incumbent and co-chair of the bipartisan House Problem Solvers Caucus, was recently named the most bipartisan Republican in the U.S. House by The Hill. He has also shown an independent streak, including a vote against Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBB).
Federal Election Commission filings show the Bucks County Republican has drawn support from other union PACs as well, including the Transportation Trades AFL-CIO, the National Letter Carriers Association, the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, the National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association, the Machinists, Firefighters, United Mine Workers, the Transport Workers, and the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees.
In 2024, Fitzpatrick was endorsed by both the Teamsters and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 269.
National Republican Congressional Committee spokesperson Maureen O’Toole said the shift in union backing reflects a broader political realignment.
“The writing is on the wall: Democrats have left workers behind, while Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick and Republicans are working relentlessly to continue earning the trust of hardworking men and women in Pennsylvania,” O’Toole said.
The Teamsters still donate more to Democrats overall — including $15,000 to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee in April — but their increasing willingness to back Republicans marks a significant departure from past practice. The union also gave $50,000 to the Republican Attorneys General Association in June, and last year contributed $25,000 to the NRCC and $45,000 to the RNC.
Democrats warn the change could have consequences for workers.
“Congressional Republicans have betrayed America’s workers and union members by selling out our communities for the GOP’s billionaire backers,” said DCCC spokesperson Viet Shelton. “House Democrats will continue to work hard to earn the support of unions and their members who have built this nation and will be critical in our comeback to victory next year.”
For now, O’Brien insists the Teamsters’ outreach is about representing all of their members. “Our members are working people whose interests cut across party lines,” Teamsters spokesperson Kara Deniz told Politico. “And there’s no value in living in a bubble … where you only talk to certain people to the exclusion of others.”
Fitzpatrick is running for reelection in 2026, with three Democrats — Bucks County Commissioner Bob Jarvie Jr., attorney Tracy Hunt, and Rob Strickler — vying for the chance to challenge him.
As unions like the Teamsters broaden their political bets, the once-solid blue wall of organized labor in Pennsylvania looks increasingly open to Republican inroads.