Local 150 endorses Vallas with $1 million contribution

An influential construction union has made it abundantly clear who they’d like to see as Chicago’s next mayor. endorsed mayoral candidate Paul Vallas with a $1 million contribution.

Local 150 of the International Union of Operating Engineers endorsed Paul Vallas after and gave the run-off candidate $1 million to support his final push for the office. This is the same sum the union gave former candidate Jesus “Chuy” Garcia, who failed to make the run off, the Chicago Sun-Times reported. 

Local 150’s threw its support behind Vallas due to their shared beliefs on safety and law enforcement policies.

“We think he (Vallas) has a track record to put the city on track to bounce back from the depths that it’s at right now as it relates to safety, the dysfunctional relationship with law enforcement and an adversarial intergovernmental relationship,” Local 150’s Ed Maher told the outlet.

The union is opposed to Johnson’s goal of defunding the police and his unwillingness to fully fund the Chicago Police Department’s $1.94 million budget. They’re also against his $800 million plan to tax the wealthy, which would help fund a $1 billion plan toward new spending on public schools, transportation, housing, health care and job creation.

Although Johnson has voiced his intent to support more developments and affordable housing projects, Local 150 believes the decline in new construction since the pandemic is tied to safety issues within the city.

“The city needs leadership that is going to reinstill confidence in the safety of the city and allow developers to feel comfortable opening their checkbooks,” Maher told the outlet.

Local 150 president Jim Sweeney has been extremely active in local elections. Recently, the union donated $1 million to Kari Steele’s campaign for Cook County assessor. He’s also endorsed and denounced mayoral candidates dating back to 2011 when he referred to Rahm Emanuel as “Judas” with “bags of silver,” the outlet said.

-Quinn Donoghue