OFFICE OF THE ELECTION SUPERVISOR
for the
INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF TEAMSTERS
IN RE: SEAN O’BRIEN & FRED ) Protest Decision 2025 ESD 13
ZUCKERMAN )
) Issued: November 5, 2025
)
Protestor. ) OES Case No. P-021-102225-WE
)
)
)
INTRODUCTION
James Donovan Jr., on behalf of Sean O’Brien, Fred Zuckerman and the Teamsters United 2026 slate for the International Brotherhood of Teamsters 2026 International Union Delegate and Officer Election (“Election”), filed a protest against Eric Johnson, candidate for Western Region Vice President, and the Fearless 2026 slate. The protest alleges that on October 22, 2025, Johnson sent campaign literature including hyperlinked campaign surveys and solicitation for campaign contributions to affiliated Teamster locals and Teamster officials, representatives, stewards, and other members. It is alleged that he used official Teamster addresses and that the emails were sent in a format that appears to be to be an official list, such as one created and maintained by a local union, or an official bargaining or grievance committee in violation of the Election Rules (“Rules”).
Deborah Schaaf of the Office of the Election Supervisor (“OES”) investigated this protest.
BACKGROUND & ANALYSIS
Johnson has been a member of Local 190 for 30 years and a member of the IBT for 42 years. Since 2023, when UPS installed inward facing infrared cameras in its package cars and feeder trucks in Billings, Montana, Johnson has spearheaded a fight against them because of the negative effect and ongoing health concerns the cameras can cause drivers. Johnson hopes that the Fearless leadership will help effect change in connection with this cause.
On October 22, 2025, Johnson received an email from the email address info@be-fearless.org. The description in the “FROM” field associated with this email address is FEARLESS SLATE 2026.” Johnson stated that he received this email from the Fearless 2026 slate coordinator Sandy Weaver. Review of this original email sent to Johnson identifies only Johnson’s personal email address in the recipient line. The message in the original email is as follows:
We are FEARLESS and we are listening
As we hear from all of you, quite a few promises have been ignored since the last election. All of a sudden, with your questions and pressure, a few of the broken promises are starting to be addressed…barely. Isn’t it ironic that as the election cycle goes further, air conditioning is being added to ‘trucks in the hottest areas’? 🤣 Um, really? What exactly are the ‘hottest’ areas? How many members will that impact? Is this just more rhetoric?
Why is it taking pressure from the bottom up and accountability at the top to actually see ANYTHING from the broken promises?
We included three links (buttons) below to continue our quest for your important input. Please fill out the surveys and sign a petition.
We are FEARLESS.
At the bottom of the message, there are three hyperlinks: Issue Survey, Infrared Exposure Survey, Click to sign and send the petition, volunteer, and donate.
When clicked, the first link (Issue Survey) brings the user to a webpage with the Fearless 2026 slate logo on the top with a fillable “FEARLESS SLATE 2026 - Member Issue Survey.” The second link (Infrared Exposure Survey) brings the user to a webpage with the Fearless 2026 slate logo on the top and a fillable “FEARLESS SLATE 2026 – Infrared Light Survey.” The third link (Click to sign and send the petition, volunteer, and donate) brings the user to a Zeffy[1] page seeking a one time or monthly donation contribution in an amount designated by the user for the Fearless 2026 slate. To submit a donation, the user must provide certain information including their name, address, phone number, confirmation of whether or not the user is a member, local union number, last four of the SSN of any member, and payment information.
After receiving this email from Weaver, Johnson stated that he copied the message and sent two emails including all three links—one at 9:10 AM MDT and a second email at 8:25 AM PDT[2] to members and locals he hoped to enlist in effort to address the infrared light issue (collectively, the “Oct. 22nd Email”). In total, Johnson sent the subject email to 42 different recipients with unique email addresses. Of these 42, 14 recipients were email addresses with Teamsters domains or local union email addresses[3] and 28 email addresses that appear to be personal. The Oct. 22nd Email did not request that the solicitation be placed on a local union table or bulletin board reserved for campaign literature.
The protest also alleged that the emails were sent in a format that appears to be an official list, such as one created and maintained by a local union or an official bargaining or grievance committee in violation of the Rules, and requested an investigation into the source of the list or recipients that the Oct. 22nd Email was sent to. Johnson denied using any official IBT list. He stated that he randomly selected locals from the IBT ‘Find Your Local’ site and from his own contacts to send the Oct. 22nd Email to. His goal in sending the email was to build support for the infrared light cause.[4] The protestor did not produce evidence showing that Johnson obtained the list of recipients from an official list.
We examined the Fearless 2026 slate’s Zeffy contribution page to determine whether any recipients of Johnson’s Oct. 22nd Email soliciting contributions from a union email address made a donation on or after that date.[5] We found that none had.[6] There is no other evidence showing that the Fearless 2026 slate financially benefitted from Johnson’s Oct. 22nd Email.
Upon the filing of the protest, Johnson acknowledged that he sent the Oct. 22nd Email to some recipients at their union email addresses. Johnson said he did not realize until the protest was filed that Weaver’s email also had a link to the Zeffy platform soliciting contribution. He conceded that the Oct. 22nd Email was sent in violation of the Rules and that he would not do it again.
ANALYSIS
As set forth in Teamsters Power, 2020 ESD 6 (July 10, 2020), several provisions of the Rules prohibit campaigning using union facilities.
Article VII, Section 12(c): “Union … facilities, … personnel, etc. may not be used to assist in campaigning unless the Union is reimbursed at fair market value for such assistance, and unless all candidates are provided equal access to such assistance and are notified in advance, in writing, of the availability of such assistance.”
Article XI, Section 1(b)(3): “No labor organization … may contribute, or shall be permitted to contribute, directly or indirectly, anything of value, where the purpose, object or foreseeable effect of the contribution is to influence, positively or negatively, the election of a candidate … No candidate may accept or use any such contribution. These prohibitions extend beyond strictly monetary contributions made by a labor organization and include contributions and use of the organization’s … facilities and personnel.”
Article XI, Section 1(b)(6): “No Union funds or other things of value shall be used, directly or indirectly, to promote the candidacy of any individual. Union … facilities, … personnel, etc. may not be used to assist in campaigns unless the Union is compensated at fair market value for such assistance, and unless all candidates are provided with equal access to such assistance and are advised in advance, in writing, of the availability of such assistance.”
Several other provisions address a candidate and campaign’s responsibility with respect to union support of campaigning:
- Article XI, Section 1(b)(1): “Only contributions which are properly solicited … under these Rules may be expended or used by candidates, slates or independent committees for the 2010-2011 International Union Delegate and Officer Election.”
- Article XI, Section 1(b)(13): “Candidates are strictly liable to insure that each contribution received is permitted under these Rules. Prohibited contributions must be returned promptly.”
- Article XI, Section 1(b)(15): “Ignorance by a candidate, by a union and/or by an employer that union or employer funds or other resources were used to promote a candidacy shall not constitute a defense to an allegation of a violation of these Rules.”
It is firmly established under the above provisions of the Rules “that a campaign may not mail, fax, or email campaign materials to a local union except where the campaign expressly requests that the material be placed on the local union’s literature table or bulletin board for general distribution” and only if it complies with the requirements of our Advisory on the Use of Literature Tables or Bulletin Boards for the Distribution of Campaign Literature Inside Union Halls. Teamsters Power, 2020 ESD 6 (July 10, 2020) (finding the use of local union email addresses for individually address campaign solicitations in violation of the Rules);[7] see In Reyes, 2010 ESD 59 (December 22, 2010) (holding that a campaign violated the Rules by using U.S. Mail to send individually addressed campaign literature and solicitations for campaign contributions to recipients at local union addresses. “A candidate or slate may not permissibly solicit campaign support or contributions using individuals’ union email addresses because such solicitation necessarily relies on a union resource to reach its intended audience.” Teamsters Power, 2020 ESD 6 (July 10, 2020).
It is uncontested that Johnson forwarded the Oct. 22nd Email to 42 recipients on the morning of October 22, 2025, and that some of the recipients were official local union email addresses. Accordingly, we find that Johnson’s Oct. 22nd email improperly solicited campaign support and contributions for Fearless 2026 using union email addresses in violation the Rules and GRANT this portion of the protest. However, we do not find that the protestor has provided evidence showing that Johnson used an official Teamster list to identify the recipients of the Oct. 22nd Email. We therefore DENY this portion of the protest.
REMEDY
When the Election Supervisor determines that the Rules have been violated, he “may take whatever remedial action is deemed appropriate.” Article XIII, Section 4. In fashioning the appropriate remedy, the Election Supervisor views the nature and seriousness of the violation as well as its potential for interfering with the election process. “The Election Supervisor’s discretion in fashioning an appropriate remedy is broad and is entitled to deference.” Hailstone & Martinez, 10 EAM 7 (September 14, 2010).
We order Fearless 2026 to email the Notice of Election Rules Violation attached to this decision to all recipients of the Oct. 22nd Email. Such emailing shall be completed within 1 day of the date this decision issues. The subject line of the email shall state “Notice of Election Rules Violation by Fearless 2026.” The purpose of the notice is remedial to inform the recipients of the Oct. 22nd Email of the requirements of the Rules, the violation found, and the remedy imposed.
Additionally, because no candidate or slate may send solicitations for support to recipients at union email addresses, we order Fearless 2026 to cease and desist from using union email addresses for such purpose and to purge from any email list it uses for soliciting support all union email addresses, whether they are addresses with union domain names or union usernames, within 5 days of the issuance of this decision. With the issuance of this decision, we have supplied a list of 14 email addresses covered by this cease and desist order directly to Johnson and Fearless 2026 and do not otherwise name them in this decision. We emphasize that a candidate or slate is strictly liable for impermissibly using a union resource for a campaign purpose. As such, if the campaign uses an email address for a campaign purpose without verifying that the email address is not official union addresses, it does so at its peril.
As of the date of this decision, we found that no recipients at union email addresses electronically donated to Fearless 2026 after the Oct. 22nd Email was sent and do not need to order the disgorgement of funds. However, we emphasize that no candidate or slate may use contributions received from members who were improperly solicited at local union addresses. Thus, any contributions that may in the future be received by Fearless 2026 through the same link/click-through procedure in response to the solicitation found improper here, must be returned. Fearless 2026 will not be permitted to benefit from its improper action.
Fearless 2026 must submit a declaration within 5 business days of the date this decision issues affirming that it has completed the remedies ordered here.
A decision of the Election Supervisor takes immediate effect unless stayed. Lopez, 96 EAM 73 (February 13, 1996).
APPELLATE RIGHTS
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. Any party requesting a hearing must comply with the requirements of Article XIII, Section 2(i). All parties are reminded that, absent extraordinary circumstances, no party may rely in any such appeal upon evidence that was not presented to the Office of the Election Supervisor. Requests for a hearing shall be made in writing, shall specify the basis for the appeal, and shall be served upon:
Election Appeals Master
Barbara Jones
Election Appeals Master
IBTappealsmaster@bracewell.com
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. Service may be accomplished by email, using the “reply all” function on the email by which the party received this decision. A copy of the protest must accompany the request for hearing. A copy of the protest must accompany the request for hearing.
Timothy S. Hillman
Election Supervisor
cc: Barbara Jones, IBTappealsmaster@bracewell.com
2025 ESD 13
DISTRIBUTION LIST (BY EMAIL UNLESS NOTED OTHERWISE):
Eric Johnson
Richard Hooker
James Donovan, Jr.
Edward M. Gleason, Jr.,
David Suetholz
Will Bloom
Ken Paff
Thomas Kokalas
Timothy S. Hillman
Paul Dever
Deborah Schaaf
dschaaf@ibtvote.org
Kelly Hogan
OFFICE OF THE ELECTION SUPERVISOR
for the INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF TEAMSTERS
1750 K STREET, N.W., SUITE 200
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20006
844-428-8683 TOLL FREE
FAX: 202-807-1074
electionsupervisor@ibtvote.org
Hon. Timothy S. Hillman
Election Supervisor
NOTICE OF ELECTION RULES VIOLATION BY FEARLESS 2026
TO: All recipients of the Fearless 2026 email sent by Eric Johnsons on October 22, 2025
The Election Supervisor has found that the Fearless 2026 campaign violated the Election Rules by sending requests for support and contributions addressed to some members at their union email addresses. Campaign solicitations generally cannot be addressed to individuals for receipt at their union email addresses because doing so impermissibly uses union assets to seek support on behalf of a candidate.
The Election Supervisor will not tolerate violation of the Rules. The Election Supervisor has ordered Fearless 2026 to send this notice to all recipients of the October 22, 2025 email to inform them of the Rules’ requirements, the violation found, and the remedy imposed. In addition, the Election Supervisor has ordered the Fearless 2026 slate to cease and desist from addressing campaign mailings to individual members at their union email addresses, unless such material is designated for distribution on a local union literature table open to all and otherwise complies with the requirements of our Advisory on that subject.
The Election Supervisor issued this decision in https://www.ibtvote.org/Protest-Decisions/esd2025/2025esd013.
Any protest you have regarding your rights under the Election Rules or any conduct by any person or entity that violates the Election Rules should be filed with the Hon. Timothy S. Hillman (Ret.), 1750 K Street, N.W., Suite 200, Washington, D.C. 20006, telephone: 844-428-8683, fax: 202-807-1074, email: electionsupervisor@ibtvote.org.
This is an official notice of the Office of the Election Supervisor.
[1] Zeffy is an online fundraising platform for nonprofits that provides tools for donations, events, peer-to-peer campaigns, and eCommerce.
[2] Copies of emails provided during the investigation corroborate that Johnson sent these two emails.
[3] This includes email addresses used by local unions for their official email communications that do not include Teamster domain names but email service by other providers such as Comcast, Gmail, AOL, Yahoo,
or others (e.g., TEAM776@comcast.net).
[4] Review of the local unions Johnson sent the subject email to appear to be random. We did not identify a pattern or specific connection between the local unions and none of the witnesses or interested parties provided information to suggest otherwise.
[5] On the left-hand side of the Zeffy webpage, you can see a list of all donations and the date of each donation.
[6] As of the date of the issuance of this decision, there were three donations made to the Fearless 2026 Zeffy contribution page after October 22, 2025. We identified all three individuals who made donations and confirmed that they were not recipients of Johnson’s Oct. 22nd Email.
[7] The Advisory on the Use of Literature Tables or Bulletin Boards for the Distribution of Campaign Literature Inside Union Halls posted on the Election Supervisor’s website, https://www.ibtvote.org/files/LiteratureTableAdvisoryFinalrevised051925.pdf, governing the 2026 Election is the substantially the same all material aspects related to this decision as it was during the last election cycle.