Culinary union’s failure to serve up its members for Obama raises questions

Culinary Local 226 underperformed Saturday, a day when many of its members rejected the union’s endorsement of Sen. Barack Obama and instead embraced Sen. Hillary Clinton.

I predicted the union endorsement would pull Obama ahead of Clinton. Instead, she won the Democratic presidential primary 51 percent to 45 percent, a generous 6-point lead.

Over the years, the Culinary union has been one of the most sought-after endorsements because of its expertise in turning out voters in key races. The union wasn’t afraid to use its political strength, and Democratic candidates groveled for its approval. When the union’s commitment went beyond just a "this is our choice" statement and included teams of people to work its members, the union tended to deliver.

Clearly, it’s a technique that works best in smaller races like County Commission, state Senate and Assembly. The union used its clout to help coffee shop waitress Maggie Carlton become a state senator in 1998. That same year, the Culinary hurt Democrat Jan Jones’ chances when it remained neutral in the gubernatorial race between Jones and Kenny Guinn, a union-friendly Republican.

In 2002, the union engaged in a Republican primary for the first time. To help state Sen. Mark James’ bid for the Clark County Commission, hundreds of Culinary members in the district switched from being Democrats to Republicans. James defeated conservative Republican Tim Cory by 227 votes.

The Culinary helped oust union-unfriendly Clark County Commissioner Lynette Boggs in 2006.

One recent sign the Culinary’s political influence has diminished was when Clark County Commissioners Chris Giunchigliani and Tom Collins took money from the Las Vegas Sands, owned by anti-union Sheldon Adelson. There was a time when labor-friendly Democrats didn’t take money from Adelson’s companies because the Culinary didn’t like that. Giunchigliani took $40,000 and Collins took $10,000 … but waited until after their 2006 elections to do it.

A few hours at Caesars Palace, one of nine at-large voting sites in hotels, showed me the error of my prediction that union strength would prevail. Caesars was one of only two hotel sites where the majority went for Obama, and it was a very narrow majority: 86 to 80. The Luxor site also went for Obama and at Wynn Las Vegas only two votes separated Clinton and Obama.

From my vantage point at Caesars, I first thought the 80-86 tally meant the caucus was going to be a squeaker. Wrong again. The numbers elsewhere quickly showed Clinton with a comfortable lead.

The first person in line to register for the caucus was Ethel McDowell, a black woman who worked in the Caesars convention center. She supported Obama even before the union endorsement 10 days earlier. "Nobody makes my mind up for me," she declared forcefully and believably.

Belem Perez, originally from Mexico, a maid at Caesars for the past six years, supported Clinton "because of her history. Go back to when she was in the White House. She puts her mind to something and she works for it. Perez didn’t have any concerns about bucking the union’s choice. "When it comes to my vote, not even the president of the hotel can tell me who to vote for."

Was the union aggressive in lobbying its members to show unity and support Obama? Yes.

Clark County Democratic Party Chairman John Hunt, whose opposition to the at-large voting sites must have earned him a spot on a Culinary enemies list, said, "Maids were calling me crying on the phone and said they were pressured."

While the consensus is that the Culinary didn’t have enough time to persuade its members because of the late endorsement, Hunt also believes there was a backlash against the union’s endorsement. "I think there can be a natural backlash when the few try to say they’re the voice of the whole."

Culinary officials refuse to say how many of their 60,000 members are citizens and Democrats who would have been eligible to vote. My calls and e-mails to get the final numbers of Culinary members who caucused, a number I was assured ahead of time the union would provide, were ignored Sunday.

Despite great expectations, the Culinary union underperformed like a penny stock in a recession. Now what will it do to resurrect its reputation as a political force to be respected … or feared?

Jane Ann Morrison’s column appears Monday, Thursday and Saturday. E-mail her at Jane@reviewjournal.com or call (702) 383-0275.