FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MARCH 26, 2020
[CHARLESTON, W.V.] The United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) National Council of COMPAC, the union’s political action committee, today announced that it has endorsed Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R) for reelection to the United States Senate and Representative David McKinley (R) for re-election in the West Virginia First Congressional District.
“Senator Capito was our leader on the Republican side of the Senate in our fight to preserve miners’ pensions and retirees’ health care,” UMWA International President Cecil E. Roberts said. “From the day she stepped into the Senate, she has been fighting alongside us for those pensions and health care benefits.
“She has also worked with us to promote the development and deployment of technology that would eventually eliminate greenhouse gas emissions from coal-fired power plants, so that today’s coal miners can keep working, provide for their families and build their communities,” Roberts said. “That is critical work for our union and our nation, and we need her voice in the Senate to continue that effort.
McKinley was the lead sponsor in the House of Representatives of the legislation to preserve miners’ pensions and retirees’ health care since 2013. “Congressman McKinley was – and is – a strong voice for working and retired miners in the House,” Roberts said. “He never wavered, he never backed away from us or our members during this long struggle, and we appreciate that very much.”
The UMWA’s West Virginia State Council of COMPAC endorsed a slate of candidates for statewide and state legislative offices in the primary as well. The full list of endorsed candidates can be found at https://umwa.org/policy-politics/compac-endorsements/
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