Ross, Cooper, Coleman get North Carolina AFL-CIO endorsement

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) – The North Carolina State AFL-CIO has endorsed Roy Cooper, Linda Coleman and Deborah Ross in 2016 as the three enter some high-profile Democratic races in the March primary.

The union organization announced Tuesday it’s backing Cooper for governor, Coleman for lieutenant governor and Ross for the U.S. Senate.

For candidates in other contested primaries, the AFL-CIO’s executive board backed Josh Stein for attorney general, June Atkinson for superintendent of public instruction, Charles Meeker for labor commissioner and Dan Blue III for state treasurer.

The board approved all the recommendations of a committee comprised of 60 union members from the private and public sectors The committee met late last week to review candidate questionnaires and interview candidates.

(Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)