Mayor Mike McGinn this morning won the endorsement of the Professional & Technical Employees Local 17, the largest union of public employees in city government.

“Mayor McGinn takes the job of running the city very seriously,” said Joe McGee, Executive Director of Local 17. “He gets his hands dirty and cares about the nuts and bolts. We are impressed by his legitimate engagement with the city workforce, which is in contrast to past administrations.

“A fundamental reason for our endorsement is that this mayor took over the job of running the city when the economy went over the cliff. In the midst of those economic uncertainties, the mayor’s collaborative, cooperative way of managing the city helped ensure that we could effectively deliver services to the people of Seattle during times which could have been incredibly disruptive for residents and city employees.”

Local 17 members, of which 2,500 work for the city of Seattle, are comprised of public sector, professional, and technical employees.

“I think that voters should think twice before disrupting our well-run city by voting in someone else. Seattle is prospering at a time when many American cities are struggling,” said McGee.

McGinn said he was honored to get the endorsement. “I thank them all for their support and I look forward to continuing to work with everyone in Seattle for four more years.”