“Biden is the tireless advocate for public education and is the partner that students and educators need now in the White House,” Lily Eskelsen García, the union’s president, said in a statement. “He understands that as a nation we have a moral responsibility to provide a great neighborhood public school for every student in every ZIP code.”

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“With so much at stake in this election, educators are determined to use their voice to propel Joe Biden to the White House,” she added.

The union backed Hillary Clinton in 2016 over Sanders, and it has never endorsed a Republican presidential candidate. Sanders has earned support from rank-and-file members in some unions, even while losing among union leadership. In Nevada, for example, the Culinary Workers Union pilloried his health-care plan, but Sanders ended up winning the state’s caucuses with the support of many of the union members.

The teachers union’s backing adds to the parade of recent endorsements for Biden, and also brings yet another prominent labor group to his corner.

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The International Association of Fire Fighters backed him from the start of his campaign, and its yellow-shirted members are a frequent presence on the campaign trail. He has also been supported by the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and the Amalgamated Transit Union, among others.

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The nation’s second-largest teachers union, the American Federation of Teachers, urged its members last month to support either Biden, Sanders or Sen. Elizabeth Warren (Mass.), who has since dropped out.

Biden has often touted education as one of the core planks of his agenda, frequently pointing out that his wife, Jill, works as a community college professor. She is also a member of the NEA.

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Biden attended all three of the union’s presidential forums, including in Iowa, Pennsylvania and Texas, and sat for a video interview.

In a statement Saturday, Biden said he was “honored to have the support of the National Education Association.”