With about 43,000 members, the CEA is the largest teacher union in the state. Lamont also has spoken against tax credits and school voucher proposals that divert tax dollars to private schools, Dias said. Lamont, a former volunteer teacher at Bridgeport’s Harding High School, said the experience had shaped his views. That group, with about 1,700 members, was the second educator union to back Elliott. In addition to the CEA, Lamont has received the endorsement of numerous labor groups, including the AFL-CIO, Teamsters, Uniformed Professional Firefighters Association, the Amalgamated Transit Union of Connecticut, the Connecticut Carpenters Union, and the Association of Commuter Rail Employees.