IN RE: JOSEPH WRIGHT, Protestor.
Protest Decision 2006 ESD 349
Issued: September 15, 2006
OES Case No. P-06-331-091106-HQ
(See also Election Appeals Master decision 06 EAM 70)
Joseph Wright, a member of Local Union 82, filed a pre-election protest pursuant to Article XIII, Section 2(b) of the Rules for the 2005-2006 IBT International Union Delegate and Officer Election ("Rules"). The protest alleged that the September 2006 issue of the Teamster magazine contained uncomplimentary photographs of Tom Leedham and his supporters, and significantly fewer pictures of the Leedham slate compared to the Hoffa slate.
Election Supervisor representative Steven R. Newmark investigated this protest.
Findings of Fact and Analysis
The protest alleged that the September 2006 issue of Teamster magazine included photographs of Hoffa supporters smiling and pumping their fists in the air while the pictures of Leedham supporters showed them to be serious and never smiling. In addition, the protestor complained that the photographs picturing Hoffa included his hands while Leedham's hands did not appear in the photo of him. The protestor asserted that 52 photos of Hoffa supporters appear in the magazine compared with only 6 pictures of Leedham supporters.
Assuming all the facts alleged are true, we find no violation of the Rules. Article VII, Section 8(a) of the Rules declares that a union-financed publication shall not:
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(3) print uncomplimentary pictures of any candidate;
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(5) contain pictures or articles reporting on the activities of a particular candidate where the same or similar activities of other similarly situated candidates for the same office(s) have not been similarly reported; or
(6) carry a substantial number of articles and/or multiple pictures featuring a particular candidate, unless all candidates for the same position are given equal treatment, equal space and equal prominence.To the extent candidates are aligned, published materials shall be reviewed with respect to all such candidates as a whole.
By the protestor's count, 6 of 58, or more than 10%, of the photographs of supporters are of Leedham supporters. The percentage of delegate votes cast for Leedham for the office of General President totaled approximately 6% percent of the total who cast ballots. As such, the number of supporter photographs fairly approximates the political demographic of the event they attended.
Further, although the number of photographs of Hoffa exceed those of Leedham (4 of Hoffa, 1 of Leedham), the two men were not "similarly situated" at the IBT convention within the meaning of Article VII, Section 8(a)(5). While both entered and departed the convention as candidates for the office of General President, Hoffa also chaired the convention for all or part of each of the 5 days the convention was in session. Significantly less than half of the proceedings of the convention was devoted to the nomination of candidates for International office. Under circumstances where Hoffa had a demonstrably larger role at the convention, it is reasonable that more photographs of Hoffa appear in the edition of Teamster magazine that is devoted to convention coverage. All of the photographs of Hoffa and Leedham show each engaged in matters that were the regular business of the convention; none depict either man as a candidate, such as accepting nomination or delivering an acceptance speech.
Finally, we decline to hold that photographs of serious and unsmiling Leedham supporters or a photo of Leedham that does not show his hands constitute "uncomplimentary pictures" within the meaning of Article VII, Section 8(a)(3).
Accordingly, we DENY the protest.
Any interested party not satisfied with this determination may request a hearing before the Election Appeals Master within two (2) working days of receipt of this decision. The parties are reminded that, absent extraordinary circumstances, no party may rely upon evidence that was not presented to the Office of the Election Supervisor in any such appeal. Requests for a hearing shall be made in writing, shall specify the basis for the appeal and shall be served upon:
Kenneth Conboy
Election Appeals Master
Latham & Watkins
885 Third Avenue, Suite 1000
New York, New York 10022
Fax: (212) 751-4864
Copies of the request for hearing must be served upon the parties, as well as upon the Election Supervisor for the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, 1725 K Street, N.W., Suite 1400, Washington, D.C. 20006-1416, all within the time prescribed above. A copy of the protest must accompany the request for hearing.
Richard W. Mark
Election Supervisor
cc: Kenneth Conboy
2006 ESD 349
DISTRIBUTION LIST (BY EMAIL UNLESS OTHERWISE SPECIFIED):
Bradley T. Raymond, General Counsel
International Brotherhood of Teamsters
25 Louisiana Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20001-2198
braymond@teamster.org
David J. Hoffa
Hoffa 2006
30300 Northwestern Highway, Suite 324
Farmington Hills, MI 48834
David@hoffapllc.com
Barbara Harvey
645 Griswold Street
Suite 3060
Detroit, MI 48226
blmharvey@sbcglobal.net
Ken Paff
Teamsters for a Democratic Union
P.O. Box 10128
Detroit, MI 48210
ken@tdu.org
Daniel E. Clifton
Lewis, Clifton & Nikolaidis, P.C.
275 Seventh Avenue, Suite 2300
New York, NY 10001
dclifton@lcnlaw.com
Stefan Ostrach
1863 Pioneer Parkway East, #217
Springfield, OR 97477-3907
saostrach@gmail.com
Joseph Wright
Local 82
330 Dorchester Street
South Boston, MA 02127
josephawright@comcast.net
Steven R. Newmark, Esq.
Office of the Election Supervisor for the
International Brotherhood of Teamsters
1725 K Street, NW, Suite 1400
Washington, DC 20006
snewmark@ibtvote.org
Jeffrey Ellison
510 Highland Avenue, #325
Milford, MI 48381
EllisonEsq@aol.com