LANSING, Mich. – The Michigan AFL-CIO has endorsed former State Senator Curtis Hertel in his
race for Congress in Michigan’s 7th District. The seat is currently held by U.S. Representative
Elissa Slotkin who is running for U.S. Senate. The endorsement is historic for the Michigan
AFL-CIO, this being the earliest the federation of labor unions has ever endorsed a congressional
candidate in modern history.
“Curtis Hertel has spent the past decade fighting and delivering for working people in the halls
of our state Capitol,” said Michigan AFL-CIO President Ron BIEBER. “This seat is critical in the
fight to advance a working people’s agenda and anti-worker special interest will be all in to flip
this district. Labor stands united behind Curtis Hertel, a proven champion of the labor
movement and we are proud to endorse his candidacy for Congress.”
Curtis Hertel was elected to the Michigan State Senate in 2014 where he served two terms,
fighting to improve economic prosperity for working people, standing up against attacks on
workers’ fundamental freedoms, and championing the labor movement. In 2018, Hertel earned
the distinction of being named Legislator of the Year from the Michigan AFL-CIO for his policy
work in leading the charge to allocate money for the First Responders Presumed Coverage Fund,
which provides workers’ compensation and medical coverage for 10 different types of cancer to
our first responders. Hertel also had a 100 percent voting record on the Michigan AFL-CIO’s
legislative scorecard throughout his entire career.
Curtis Hertel speaking at the Michigan AFL-CIO’s Working People’s Future Constitutional
Convention, shortly before his endorsement.
Prior to his time in the State Senate, Curtis served on the Ingham County Commission, where he
worked to expand access to affordable health care and lower the cost of prescription drugs for
seniors. Most recently he worked in Governor Whitmer’s administration and was instrumental
in passing the historic Restoring Workers’ Rights package – which included the repeal of the
so-called “Right-to-Work” worker suppression law.
“It is a true honor to receive the endorsement of Michigan AFL-CIO in my campaign for
Congress,” said HERTEL. “This is a critical moment for the labor movement in our country, and I
am proud to stand with you in this fight. Unions built the middle class right here in Michigan,
and our state is well poised for the jobs of tomorrow — but that only matters when
hard-working Michiganders working in those jobs can afford to raise a family, share the success
of the industry, and retire with dignity. I promise if you elect me to the United States Congress, I
will fight like hell every day to restore the promise of America.”
The Michigan AFL-CIO, Michigan’s largest labor organization, is a federation representing forty
different labor organizations, eighteen different central labor councils, and eight constituency
groups representing over 1 million union members and their families.
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