Laborers' District Council Gives
Its Nod To Almond
Oct. 7, 1998
The Rhode Island Laborers' District Council announced its
endorsement of Governor Almond yesterday, marking the second time the
union has broken ranks with the Rhode Island AFL-CIO to back the
Republican governor. The union, which is an arm of the Laborers' International Union of
North America, also backed Almond in 1994.
"His performance over the four years satisfies us," said
Ronald M. Coia, business manager of the Rhode Island council. "He's done very well
for us in the area of construction."
Coia cited Almond's support of the Providence Place mall, which
has added 125 new Laborers' union positions and promises many more. State employees
represented by the union also have received a fair shake from Almond's
administration, Coia said.
"We think he did the job for us,"
he said.
Almond secured the union endorsement after meeting with LIUNA
General President Arthur Coia (Ron Coia's cousin) in Newport last month.
The governor, a former U.S. attorney, has courted
the Laborers' endorsement despite highly publicized allegations of mob influence in the
union. Almond campaign manager Edward Morabito said the governor is not
worried that cozying up to a union with a less-than-savory reputation will hurt the
governor.
"The endorsement reflects the fact that the Laborers, as an
organization, believes that the governor has done a good job for the working people of
Rhode Island," Morabito said.
"The vast majority of Rhode Islanders know
Lincoln Almond, know his record. This has nothing do with problems they may have had, or
allegations that may have been made."