On the Dash:
- UAW President Shawn Fain claimed reelection with about 68% of the vote in preliminary tallies.
- His United UAW slate appears set to sweep the union’s International Executive Board.
- Fain leads despite monitor findings of retaliation and a reported federal grand jury investigation.
UAW President Shawn Fain declared victory Friday in his reelection bid, The Detroit News reported. Preliminary results indicate that his United UAW slate is poised to sweep the union’s International Executive Board. In preliminary tallies posted by the union’s court-appointed monitor, Fain received about 68% of the vote and led in every region.
His closest challenger, Vice President Rich Boyer, performed best in Michigan’s Region 1, with about 26%. The margin is far wider than in 2023, when Fain narrowly won a runoff in the union’s first direct election.
Brandon Campbell, the Region 4 Director, appears set to replace Margaret Mock as secretary-treasurer. Vice President Laura Dickerson, Kevin Gotinsky and Ryan Hiestand led the race for the three vice president seats.
Contracts and organizing gains
Fain’s first term produced new contracts with General Motors, Ford and Stellantis in 2023. The deals raised pay 25% over four years and ended wage tiers. Fain told members in September 2025 the union would not back down on pensions and retiree health care.
The union also made gains in the South. Workers at Volkswagen’s Chattanooga, Tennessee, plant voted 73% to join the UAW in 2024 and ratified their first contract in February. Workers at a Mercedes-Benz plant in Alabama rejected the union a month after the Volkswagen vote.
Opposition and investigations
Fain also faced sustained opposition. The monitor, Neil Barofsky, found in June 2025 that Fain retaliated against Mock after she hesitated to approve certain spending for his office. A month later, UAW Local 140 in Warren, Michigan, voted 80-0 to approve internal charges against him.
This July, Bloomberg reported that a federal grand jury was investigating Fain over allegations that he used his position to get benefits for his fiancée and her sister. No charges have been filed. Fain denied the allegations and said Barofsky has a political grudge against him.
What’s next
The monitor must certify the results before they become official. Members have at least 15 days after the unofficial results announcement to file protests with the monitor. Winners serve from their swearing-in through the swearing-in after the 2030 election.
The larger test comes in 2028, when contracts with General Motors, Ford and Stellantis expire and the pension demand Fain outlined last year reaches the table.
