Baltimore Union Election Update - Randi Talks Trusteeship - DUHHH!

Weingarten replied, “I believe all parties [Baltimore Teacher Union] have now come to the national union seeking intervention, be it temporary trusteeship, an investigation or a rerun of the most recent election.”... Mike Antonucci report: Who Asked for a Trusteeship?

I wrote after the initial report of the insurgent win:

Don't expect this Baltimore outcome to be accepted by the caucus in power - Unity-like caucuses do not give up power easily. They will probably go to the AFT to adjudicate. 

Given that English is the president of AFT Maryland and an AFT vice presidents and Randi ally, and the politics of the insurgents are not in Randi's wheelhouse, I always expected the AFT to get involved with the hope of keeping English in power. So expect a new election. And overturning the election.

Note an interesting issue - English only protested the election in areas where she lost -- the classrooms. 

Antonucci writes:

As things stand, English has the new election she wants, and president-elect Brown certainly doesn’t want to be removed before she has even had a chance to be seated. Her letter mentions nothing about a trusteeship.
Under a trusteeship, all democratic functions of the union are suspended, and it generally ends with a new election. Who benefits?

Who benefits, indeed? Keep in mind that one of the keys in maintaining Unity Caucus control of city, state and national union is making sure leftist ideology never take hold. The AFT operates the same way on the international teacher front.

Watch the same politics play out in the Democratic nomination process where the AFT will play a role in keeping Bernie or any other left leaning 



Previous ed notes reports on the Baltimore election:

• Baltimore Election Committee Orders New Election for but only for seats leadership lost - Antonucci

• Social Justice Activist Ousts Randi Ally, 21-Year ...

And Antonucci's entire post:

Who Asked for a Trusteeship?

Posted: 29 May 2019 08:25 AM PDT

The controversy surrounding the Baltimore Teachers Union election grows ever larger, with the very real possibility that the national union will step in and the election will count for nothing.
If you have been following along, 21-year incumbent Marietta English was voted out of office in favor of challenger Diamonté Brown. To complicate matters, Brown’s slate won the teacher representative seats while English’s slate won the support employee seats.
English filed a challenge to the results, claiming multiple violations by the opposition slate. Within days, the union’s election committee had somehow launched and concluded an investigation, deciding the election had to be rerun, but only for the executive offices and the teacher seats.
In response, Brown called on the American Federation of Teachers to investigate the conduct of the elections committee. In a May 24 letter to AFT president Randi Weingarten, Brown stated, “At no point have I been informed of what the specific allegations are that would require a new election. Nor have I been told of who was allegedly engaged in such violations. It is also unclear if an investigation has even taken place; no reports have been issued, nor has the Nominations and Elections Committee explained how any alleged violations affected the outcome of the election.”
Weingarten replied, “I believe all parties have now come to the national union seeking intervention, be it temporary trusteeship, an investigation or a rerun of the most recent election.” She promised AFT “will make a decision on the next steps in the coming days.”
Certainly both sides have reason to run to AFT for support, but who asked for a trusteeship? As things stand, English has the new election she wants, and president-elect Brown certainly doesn’t want to be removed before she has even had a chance to be seated. Her letter mentions nothing about a trusteeship.
Under a trusteeship, all democratic functions of the union are suspended, and it generally ends with a new election. Who benefits?