Massachusetts union endorses Edwards

By Jenn Abelson, Globe Staff

Democratic presidential contender John Edwards picked up the backing today from the 90,000-member Massachusetts chapter of the Service Employees International Union.

This is the 11th SEIU affiliate endorsement that the former senator from North Carolina has secured since Monday, representing more than 1 million working families. The other chapters are: California, Idaho, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Ohio, Oregon, Washington, and West Virginia.

"John Edwards understands the everyday struggles of working families," Rocio Saenz, president of SEIU Local 615 in Massachusetts, said in a statement.

SEIU declined to make a national endorsement because no candidate had enough support, so the state chapters were left up to make individual endorsements.

So far, rival Senator Barack Obama has picked up support from his home state SEIU chapter in Illinois and Indiana, representing a total of 170,000 members.