John W. Wilhelm was elected president/hospitality industry of UNITE HERE at the union's founding convention on July 9, 2004.
[1] Previously, Wilhelm became president of HERE on August 1, 1998, elected by the union's general executive board to fill a vacancy, and was elected to a full term at the union's 43rd general convention, July 17, 2001.
The union also substantially diversified its national leadership, including election in 2001 of the union's first women general officers, its first general officer of color, its first Asian-American vice president, significant increases in the number of African-American, Latino, and women vice presidents, and its first elected Canadian director.
He serves as a board member of the Brookings Institution and the Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc., and is a member of the AFL-CIO executive committee and executive council.
[2] Wilhelm is a first cousin of New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio.