FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 23, 2026
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Louisville, KY — The Laborers’ International Union of North America (LIUNA), representing more than half a million workers who build and maintain America’s infrastructure, today endorsed Charles Booker for United States Senate, further cementing his position as the clear frontrunner in Kentucky’s Democratic primary with less than four weeks until Election Day.
The endorsement lands as Booker builds on the commanding momentum from Monday’s KET U.S. Senate debate, where he earned the stage as the candidate with the clearest vision and the strongest record of fighting for working Kentuckians. While others offered excuses, hedges, and political caution, Booker offered solutions on health care, wages, and the cost of living, with the urgency and moral clarity this moment demands.
“Laborers built Kentucky, and we’re still building and serving this Commonwealth every day, but for too long the folks in Washington have forgotten who does the work. Charles Booker hasn’t, and he stands up for the men and women who keep Kentucky running, on our job sites and in the workplaces our communities count on,” said Neal Cotton, President of LIUNA Local 576. Kentucky Laborers are proud to stand with Charles because he stands with us.”
Booker entered this week’s debate with commanding momentum. The latest Emerson College Polling/FOX56 survey shows him leading the Democratic primary at 36 percent, double his nearest opponent at 18 percent, in a field where 38 percent of voters are still deciding. His lead is built on the strongest name ID of any Democrat in the race and a grassroots movement organizing across all 120 Kentucky counties.
“I am humbled and energized to earn the endorsement of LIUNA,” said Charles Booker. “The Laborers are the backbone of this country. They build our roads and bridges, power our homes, and keep America moving. They have had my back from day one because they know I will have theirs in the United States Senate. This endorsement is more proof that our movement is growing every single day, from the hood to the holler.”
“Kentuckians are tired of politicians telling them what they can’t do. LIUNA knows the difference between talk and action, and that is exactly the fight I am bringing to the United States Senate,” Booker added.
LIUNA’s decision reflects Booker’s long record of standing with organized labor. As a state representative, Booker fought alongside LIUNA and Kentucky’s labor movement to raise wages, defend collective bargaining, and expand opportunity for working families. His signature Working People’s Bill of Rights pledges to strengthen the right to organize, defend Davis-Bacon prevailing wage standards and Project Labor Agreements, oppose so-called “Right-to-Work” schemes, support the PRO Act, protect multi-employer pension funds and Social Security, and stand with federal workers under sustained attack from the Trump Administration.
The LIUNA endorsement joins a rapidly expanding coalition behind Booker’s campaign, including former Congressman John Yarmuth, the Working Families Party, and labor organizations across the Commonwealth, underscoring the breadth of support powering his frontrunner bid.
The Kentucky Democratic primary is May 19, 2026.
About LIUNA
Founded in 1903, the Laborers’ International Union of North America represents more than half a million members across the United States and Canada. LIUNA members build and maintain the nation’s roads, bridges, tunnels, airports, pipelines, power plants, data centers, and the critical infrastructure that powers the American economy. LIUNA’s mission is carried out through nine regions, more than forty district councils, and 380 local unions.
About Charles Booker
Charles Booker is a former Kentucky State Representative, founder of Hood to the Holler, and the 2022 Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate, the first Black Kentuckian to win a major party nomination for the U.S. Senate in the Commonwealth’s history. Learn more at charlesbooker.org.