Dave Regan #

Introduction #

Dave Regan is the president of SEIU-United Healthcare Workers West (SEIU-UHW), one of California’s most powerful labor unions, and the architect of Proposition 40, a state ballot measure that would impose a one-time 5% tax on billionaires to help backfill federal healthcare funding cuts. In September 2026, Regan was publicly accused of physically assaulting a former female colleague and of harassing, bullying and intimidating other women who work for an affiliated union, allegations detailed in an investigative report commissioned by SEIU California and first reported by the Los Angeles Times. Regan denies the assault allegation, acknowledged only using curse words, and says the accusations are a politically motivated smear campaign driven by billionaires and Gov. Gavin Newsom’s allies ahead of the Prop 40 vote.

Background Information #

Regan leads SEIU-United Healthcare Workers West, the SEIU local whose president he has long been, and built a reputation as a bruising political operator known for pushing statewide ballot measures as political leverage. His signature measure, Proposition 40, would levy a one-time 5% tax on billionaires living in California to help backfill federal cuts to healthcare funding for low-income people. The proposal has caused a rift within the Democratic Party and among labor unions that are typically aligned: while Regan’s own union backs it, Newsom opposes it, and even the larger SEIU California body has been at odds with Regan over it. Newsom publicly vented his frustration with Regan’s tactics in December, griping that “we have one individual that represents one labor union in the state of California that has not collected one signature” for a wealth tax “that the vast majority of labor opposes.” Regan, in turn, has called Newsom’s posture baffling for a Democrat eyeing the presidency.

The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation #

Allegations. The claims in this section are allegations from an investigative report commissioned by SEIU California and conducted by the labor law firm Cohen, Weiss and Simon, which reported partially substantiating them. They were never admitted by Regan, never criminally charged, and never adjudicated in court. Regan denies the assault and denies most of the rest, calling the whole account a fabricated, politically motivated smear.

The report, produced by investigators from the labor law firm Cohen, Weiss and Simon between April and July at the union’s own initiative, substantiated allegations against Regan, according to the Los Angeles Times. It found the allegations of a 2009 physical assault credible, citing the interview of Courtni Pugh — former head of SEIU’s California State Council — and testimony from a colleague who spoke with her immediately after the alleged confrontation. Pugh told investigators that in 2009 Regan kicked open her office door, “jacked” her against a wall, pushed his finger against her chest and screamed that she was a “dumbass”; the AP’s account of her testimony says he yelled at her, kicked in her office door and backed her up against a bookcase, following expletives directed at her. The probe also partially substantiated allegations that Regan bullied, intimidated or tried to pressure other labor leaders into supporting Proposition 40. SEIU California executive director Tia Orr told investigators Regan warned her in December that the union needed to back the measure by January 1 or “I’m coming for you” — Orr later told members she felt unsafe — and David Huerta, a former president of the SEIU California State Council, accused Regan of trying to extort the organization for an endorsement of the billionaire tax. The report further alleged harassing behavior by Regan against other women working for the organization. SEIU California has since filed charges against Regan with the SEIU International Union alleging a pattern of bullying, extortion and threats.

Public Reaction and Consequences #

Pugh said she reported the incident when it occurred and joined the later investigation “because I saw that his behavior had continued and in hopes that no one else would have to endure this kind of treatment from him,” calling Regan’s response “offensive to the women and people who have had to endure his threatening behavior.” At a news conference, Regan said, “I will own up to and take responsibility for anything that I’ve said and anything that I’ve done. But I absolutely am not going to stand by and … be expected to accept flat out lies,” while acknowledging only that he had used curse words with union leaders. He branded Pugh’s claim “fabricated,” noted it is “a matter of public record that she is working for the No on Proposition 40 campaign,” and blamed a “smear campaign” he traced back to a holiday party hosted by Newsom last year, saying the allegations were an attempt by billionaires, Newsom and Democratic gubernatorial frontrunner Xavier Becerra to assassinate his character weeks before voters decide Prop 40; officials for Newsom and Becerra did not immediately respond to comment requests. SEIU-UHW called Pugh’s allegation a “trumped-up claim from 17 years ago” and said “unrelated verbal interactions spanning nearly two decades are being stitched together and stripped of context to manufacture a false narrative about the union’s leadership,” while accusing opponents of the measure of working to make the report public. SEIU California, for its part, said it acted to uphold “values of respect, fairness and equity in the workplace.”

Current Status #

As of September 12, 2026, Regan remains president of SEIU-UHW. SEIU California has filed internal charges against him with the SEIU International Union alleging a pattern of bullying, extortion and threats, and the outcome of that union-discipline process had not been reported. No criminal charge or police investigation against Regan has been announced in connection with the allegations, and the coverage consulted for this page records no lawsuit, resignation or leave of absence. The investigative report has landed weeks before California voters decide Proposition 40, the measure Regan authored, and the fight over it continues: Regan insists the allegations are a political hit, while SEIU California says its leaders are saying “Enough!” to abuses.

Impact on Their Career/Life #

The substantiated findings have put a decade-defining stain on one of California’s most consequential labor careers at the worst possible moment for Regan’s signature cause. The physical-assault allegation against a female colleague — deemed credible by investigators seventeen years later, on the strength of a witness who says she spoke with Pugh immediately afterward — now sits alongside union charges that could end his leadership of SEIU-UHW. Whatever the SEIU International process decides, Regan’s public defense has fused his personal conduct case with the Prop 40 campaign itself, converting a policy fight into a credibility fight.