Key facts
- Ballot counting is underway for the United Auto Workers leadership election.
- Incumbent president Shawn Fain is seeking a second four-year term.
- Union members are also electing three vice presidents, a secretary-treasurer, and regional directors.
- A federal monitor, New York attorney Neil Barofsky, is tallying the votes.
- The federal monitor's office began counting union votes on Tuesday.
- Fain is the first president selected by direct-election method after a 2021 vote.
Ballot counting is underway for the leadership of the United Auto Workers union, with incumbent president Shawn Fain seeking a second four-year term. Fain, who gained prominence for leading strikes against Ford Motor, General Motors and Stellantis in 2023, faces multiple opponents for the top leadership position. Union members are also electing three vice presidents, a secretary-treasurer, and regional directors.
A federal monitor, New York attorney Neil Barofsky, appointed in 2021 to oversee union activities following a corruption scandal, is tallying the votes. The monitor's office began counting the ballots on Tuesday.
Fain is the first UAW president to be selected by a direct-election method, a change approved by union members in 2021 that replaced the previous delegate system. If no candidate secures a majority of the votes in any race, a run-off election will be held.
Executives at GM, Ford and Stellantis are expected to closely watch the election results, as these companies recently agreed to new contracts following the Fain-led strikes.