Despite declining poll numbers and voters’ concerns about several scandals, Hillary Clinton continues to pick up major endorsements in early primary states.
The National Education Association-New Hampshire endorsed Clinton for president Monday. With more than 16,000 members, the NEA-NH is the largest public union in the state.
“Hillary Clinton has been a tireless fighter for both students and educators throughout her career,” NEA-NH President Scott McGilvray said in a press release. “Hillary understands the power of a strong public education system and the difference a quality education will make in a child’s life, and she is ready to stand up for our teachers, strengthen our education system, and ensure that every child in America has access to a quality public education that will prepare them for lifelong educational and economic achievement.”
The NEA-NH endorsement could help determine the winner of the crucial early primary state. The union’s membership is roughly equal to five percent of the 2008 turnout in the Democratic presidential primary. Clinton won that primary by 2.6 percentage points, boosted by her NEA-NH endorsement.
In an August interview with the Washington Examiner, McGilvray described what the union will do to support its chosen candidate. “We’ll be doing phone banks, we plug our members into the candidate’s offices, and we’re working very closely with them,” McGilvray said.
McGilvray told the Examiner that the union was focused on two key issues in its recommendation process: Early childhood education and higher education.
On K-12 education, McGilvray said, “No Child Left Behind was a huge failure.” Clinton voted for No Child Left Behind twice in the Senate. Bernie Sanders voted for the bill in its first iteration, but voted against it after it was reported out of a conference committee.
The union offered to include Republican presidential candidates in its process, but none of them responded to the union’s invitations.
The National Education Association is expected to make its own endorsement in the 2016 race. The American Federation of Teachers, the second-largest teachers union in the country, has already endorsed Clinton.
