Teamsters United has filed a post-election protest, detailing widespread violations by the Hoffa-Hall Campaign. Teamsters United calls for the election, which has not been certified, to be rerun. 

The protest, filed by Teamsters United attorney Julian Gonzalez, details how IBT resources were systematically used to obstruct investigators and delay the release of documents detailing corruption in the Hoffa-Hall administration.

On November 29, Federal Judge Loretta Preska ordered obstruction charges to proceed against Ken Hall. But, by that time, the ballots had already been counted.

Hoffa and Hall spent millions of dollars in members’ dues in the obstruction effort, according to a related protest by Teamsters for a Democratic Union counsel Barbara Harvey.

The TDU protest defends the legal principle of a “fair and informed vote” which Hoffa-Hall went to extreme measures to block. 

A third brief from attorney Cathy Highet will be filed soon as a companion effort on this issue.

Other violations cited in the Teamsters United protest include:

• Widespread employer favoritism of Hoffa-Hall.
• Employer interference with Teamsters United campaigners, including denying parking lot access.
• The firing of Teamsters United campaigners by UPS and Republic Services in Southern California, in collusion by Teamster officials who back Hoffa-Hall.
• Surveillance, threats and intimidation by Hoffa supporters and even a Hoffa slate member.
• Widespread refusal by local unions to provide worksite lists.
• The refusal by 25 local unions representing more than 150,000 members to turn over email lists to Teamsters United, as required by the rules, delaying campaigning.

The election was, by far, the closest in Teamster history, with the closest At-Large Vice President margin standing at just 4,157 votes.

The Election Supervisor will now consider the protest, which asks that the election not be certified for General President, General Secretary Treasurer, At-Large Vice Presidents, Trustees, and Eastern Vice Presidents, and the certification be revoked for the Western Region Vice Presidents.  

The protest does not object to the certification of the Canadian officers, and argues the Central and Southern Vice Presidents elected on the Teamsters United ticket should be certified promptly, as they certainly did not benefit from the Hoffa-Hall violations. 

Hoffa’s campaign attorney, David Hoffa, filed a protest regarding the election of Kimberly Schultz, seeking to block the only woman elected from taking office. 

We expect that issue to be settled fairly and Schultz’s election to be certified. 

Hoffa has filed no protest regarding the other five candidates elected in the Central and Southern regions.