A U.S. Justice Department investigation into United Auto Workers President Shawn Fain is reshaping the race to lead the powerful Detroit union, with challengers seeking to capitalize on the news, Fain aggressively punching back, and members evaluating their options with just over a month before ballots are mailed out.

Candidates for the top union job, seeing an opening, were quick to post scathing statements on social media after news broke that Fain was facing the federal inquiry. They say a full reset is needed considering the union's recent history: Fain is the fourth recent UAW president to face a federal probe, with two of those former leaders doing prison time for embezzling union funds.

Even some candidates for lower union offices said they planned to leverage the revelations about the investigation to their advantage. And it's set to be a hot topic during livestreamed debates for president, vice president and secretary-treasurer later this month.

“It casts a cloud over Shawn Fain’s administration,” said Marick Masters, a retired Wayne State University labor professor. “It casts a cloud as to where the union might go under his continued leadership, and whether the members are willing to take that risk going forward.”

The court-appointed monitor overseeing the union recently reported that Fain abused his power to secure benefits for his fiancée and her sister, a finding that is now being probed by the DOJ. That monitor's report — and the federal probe — came just after candidate nominations were finalized and weeks before ballots are to be mailed to the union's roughly 400,000 members and 600,000 retirees, at the end of August.

This will be the second direct election in the union's 90-year history. Running as a reformer, Fain narrowly won the first one-member, one-vote election in 2023 — a system members approved following the prior scandal involving top leadership.

Fain wants to build on momentum of the past few years under his leadership, as the UAW won record contracts, organized prominent plants, and helped raise the labor movement's national profile. At first he appeared to have a straightforward reelection path.

But the latest revelations raised several questions — about whether challengers, such as current Vice President Rich Boyer, now have a path to unseat him, whether Fain could be prevented from running, or what might happen if he wins reelection but is later forced to step aside. The answers could have far-reaching implications for the future of the labor movement and upcoming contract talks with the Detroit Three automakers and other companies.

“We don’t know the effect yet," said Harley Shaiken, a labor expert and professor emeritus at the University of California, Berkeley. "But it could be troubling for Shawn Fain.”

David Pillsbury, who works at General Motors Co.'s Flint truck plant and is running for a Region 1D director position in the union, said he's talked with several candidates in recent days who all want more clarity on how the Fain probe could affect the election.

“I think that the monitor owes every candidate, and every UAW member, an answer on what could happen here," Pillsbury said.

Fain says opponents trying to 'rig' election

Union members are trying to catch up on a head-spinning few weeks of developments, including the DOJ probe and then Fain lashing out at Boyer as well as the monitor, Neil Barofsky, an attorney from New York.

On a recent livestream, Fain called allegations about him seeking favors for family "total bull----." He alleged it was actually Boyer who had inappropriately sought to hire his daughter and grandson on union staff.

Fain said he'd been "silent about these attacks for two years," referring to a series of critical reports by the monitor, but felt he needed to speak out last week to set the record straight.

“People have now taken their political ambitions to the federal monitor, to try and rig this election, because they can’t run on what they’ve done for the membership," he said.

Boyer, once a Fain ally, himself has taken to social media to repeatedly criticize Fain over the federal investigation and the recent monitor's report, which found that Fain had previously retaliated against Boyer by stripping him of his duties overseeing the union's Stellantis NV department. Boyer, who is one of five people challenging Fain, didn't respond to a request for comment.

William Earley, a UAW member who works at Detroit Assembly Complex-Jefferson, which makes Jeep and Dodge SUVs, said many of his union colleagues continue to support Fain after they secured large raises and other benefits in the last round of negotiations.

But the 32-year-old said the monitor's reports criticizing Fain's actions leading the union are concerning to him, and he's urging other members to study up on the issue.

“We deserve a leadership that gets those record gains, but does it with integrity and fairness to everyone, including the people at Solidarity House," said Earley, who plans to vote for Boyer.

George Windau, a union retiree from the Jeep plant in Toledo, said he's become disenchanted with Fain and is still looking at the other candidates. But he struggles to see anyone else who's equipped to fight so aggressively for workers in bargaining, and serve as a spokesperson for the American working class, as Fain has.

The 74-year-old also questions the legitimacy of the DOJ investigation and the seriousness of the allegations against Fain. Unlike past presidents, Fain is not facing allegations involving bribery or embezzlement.

"I think it's going to backfire on the government," Windau said.

Scott Houldieson, who works at Ford Motor Co.'s Chicago Assembly Plant and chairs a group, UAW Member Action, that has endorsed Fain, said the investigation won't affect its support. He said he's lost faith in the union's monitor and also raised questions about the political motivations behind the probe.

“It’s a Trump DOJ,” Houldieson said. “We’ve seen them go after other political enemies. It’s not surprising. It’s disappointing, but it’s not surprising that Trump’s DOJ would go after Shawn Fain.”

DOJ probe a 'disgrace' to membership

Others inside the union said the recent Fain developments speak to lingering reputational problems for a union that desperately needs to move past them.

Tricia Geiger, a UAW international servicing representative from the Toledo area who is running against Fain, said in a campaign video that the DOJ probe was an "embarrassment" and a "disgrace to all our members."

She expressed concerns that such an investigation could ultimately lead to a full government takeover of the union.

In an interview, Geiger said the union continues to have deep-rooted cultural problems as it struggles to hold top leaders accountable. She plans to discuss the Fain investigation with workers, but wouldn't make it a "hallmark of my campaign" as other candidates have. Geiger still wants to focus on topics such as her bargaining experience, and discuss concerns workers have, such as the union's recent political endorsements.

Brian Keller, another presidential candidate, recently told The Detroit News his campaign message is about winning back pensions and retirement health care. But the Stellantis worker has also hammered away at Fain on his popular Facebook page, including in a recent statement calling the investigation "deeply troubling to every member of our union."

"If you’re tired of watching this union be dragged through scandal after scandal while those in power do nothing, then it’s time to take action yourself," Greg Mooney, another presidential candidate, recently wrote on his campaign page.

Tony Totty, who leads UAW Local 14 in Toledo, is running for one of three vice president positions inside the union, said he does have concerns about the timing of the investigation, coming just before the election.

But overall, he told The News, the probe casts a new cloud over the organization. It leaves members struggling to "triangulate" what's going on inside their union leadership after they've already faced the prior corruption scandal and dealt with issues such as two-tier wages and automaker bankruptcies.

"Our membership is exhausted," Totty said, "and they deserve better."

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