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May 12, 1999 3:22 PM, EDT

With a crowd of about 3,500 cheering and chanting “Hoffa, Hoffa, Hoffa,” the son of the vanished former Teamsters leader with the most famous name in trucking labor history took the reins and declared “a new era” for the union at his inauguration on May 1.

“The Teamsters are back,” James P. Hoffa said after taking a ceremonial oath of office from his sister, Barbara Ann Crancer, an associate county circuit judge in St. Louis.

The formal swearing-in at Teamsters’ headquarters in Washington, D.C., featured a banner-waving, band-playing and horn-blowing tractor-trailer parade. That was followed by an autograph-signing, fund-raising, hot-dog-and-beer reception at the Washington Convention Center, all of which was broadcast live over the Internet.

Also sworn in were Secretary-Treasurer C. Thomas Keegel and 25 members of the general executive board, which sets policy for the union.

On a raised platform set up in front of Teamsters headquarters facing the U.S. Capitol, Hoffa promised to rid the union of division, balance its budget and rebuild political clout by raising money for candidates of both major parties.

“We are going to reward our friends and oppose our enemies, and we know the difference," he said.

For the full story, see the May 10 print edition of Transport Topics. Subscribe today.