Police union that backed Trump in 2016 won’t endorse this year

Cleveland’s police union will not issue a presidential endorsement this year after backing President Trump in the 2016 cycle. 

The Cleveland Police Patrolmen’s Association (CPPA) decided not back either Trump or former Vice President Joe Biden, or candidates in future presidential or mayoral elections following a vote by its board of directors and a group of 30 officers, according to Cleveland.com.

The CPPA did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Hill. 

The CPPA’s 2016 endorsement of Trump marked the union’s first ever presidential endorsement, sparking divisions within the group and ultimately costing former CPPA president Steve Loomis his job. 

Union President Jeff Follmer, who unseated Loomis in 2017, campaigned on a promise that he would not pressure members to issue endorsements. 

The news comes as law enforcement finds itself in the middle of a national reckoning over systemic racism and police brutality following the police killing of George Floyd in May. 

Demonstrators have urged lawmakers to curtail the budgets of police departments and use those funds to boost social services, a stance Republicans have construed as an effort to eliminate law enforcement.

Trump has rallied around a “law and order” mantle, earning him the endorsement of the New York Police Department’s union, and accused Biden of seeking to “defund the police,” a stance the former vice president does not hold.