Rebecca Damon Narrowly Re-Elected SAG-AFTRA Executive VP
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SAG-AFTRA convention delegates have re-elected Rebecca Damon to a two-year term as executive vice president of the performers union over Jane Austin.
The election took place Friday on the second day of the biennial SAG-AFTRA National Convention at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif. The four-day event is closed to the news media.
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The exec VP slot is the second-highest elected post in SAG-AFTRA and shall act in the place of the president if the president is absent. Damon’s re-election is a victory for the Carteris supporters, who operate the Unite for Strength and United Screen Actors Nationwide slates.
Damon has been in the exec VP post since April, 2016, succeeding Gabrielle Carteris in the slot. Carteris became president after Ken Howard died, serving the final 16 months of his term and was re-elected in 2017 over Esai Morales and again in August over Matthew Modine. But Modine’s supporters in the progressive Membership First slate dominated the voting in Los Angeles and gained slots on the 80-member national board.
Damon was part of the successful efforts to merge SAG with AFTRA in 2012, which brought in broadcasters and recording artist into what had been an actors union. SAG-AFTRA has about 160,000 members. Damon has credits on “The Guiding Light,” “As the World Turns” and “One Life to Live” in addition to working as a voiceover performer.
Damon was also re-elected Aug. 29 to another two-year term as SAG-AFTRA New York Local president. She had been in that post since 2017, upon the death of New York Local president Mike Hodge.
Allies of Carteris were also elected to the seven other National VP posts on Friday: Clyde Kusatsu, Los Angeles;
Liz Zazzi, New York; Michele Proude, Mid-Sized Locals; Suzanne Burkhead, Small Locals; William Charlton, Actors/Performers; Bob Butler, Broadcasters; and Dan Navarro, Recording Artists/Singers.
(An earlier version of this article reported incorrectly that Damon had defeated David Jolliffe)
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