Meet the United Auto Workers members who could swing the election

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Meet the United Auto Workers members who could swing the election

At Ford’s Michigan Assembly auto plant, support is divided between strong camps of Trump enthusiasts, Harris devotees and undecided voters.


A Ford Bronco at the company’s assembly plant in Wayne, Mich., on June 14, 2021. (Jeff Kowalsky/AFP/Getty Images)

By Lauren Kaori Gurley
September 27, 2024 at 6:00 a.m. EDT

WAYNE, MICH. — On his 10-hour shifts installing brake lines on Ford SUVs and trucks, United Auto Workers member Andrew Hudson listens to news and political commentary on his AirPods, from liberal MSNBC to conservative podcaster Joe Rogan. He admires former president Donald Trump’s “forceful” leadership style, though said he can be “full of crap.” And he wants to like Vice President Kamala Harris, but he said he doesn’t get a clear sense of where she stands on key issues, such as the economy and inflation.

“I am really so undecided,” Hudson said in an interview with The Washington Post over garlic knots this week. “If you want to see someone who is in the middle, that is me. … Ford’s Michigan Assembly plant just outside Detroit has emerged as a battleground in the 2024 presidential campaign, where workers — like the state itself — are up for grabs.

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Some UAW members from Michigan Assembly said they planned to attend the Trump event on Friday, where the former president is expected to talk about his agenda for “rebuilding the auto industry,” according to his campaign website. Misti Robinette, a Ford employee for 25 years, will be there.

Robinette, 50, said she voted Democratic her whole life and initially found Trump offensive toward women, until her 22-year-old son persuaded her to read up on him. Now she supports his efforts to crack down on undocumented immigration and leave abortion restrictions up to the states, as well as his record as a businessman.

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Misti Robinette, a 25-year UAW member, at Ford's Michigan Assembly. (Misti Robinette)

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A Ford worker in Wayne, Mich. (Bill Pugliano/Getty Images)

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By Lauren Kaori Gurley
Lauren Kaori Gurley is the labor reporter for The Washington Post. She previously covered labor and tech for Vice for three years. follow on X @laurenkgurley