WASHINGTON--Ten of 15 candidates for Congress with whom CUNA was directly involved won their races, but among the five losses were several strong supporters of credit unions, such as Colorado Sen. Mark Udall. CUNA and credit unions sent more than 2.1-million pieces of direct mail to 400,000 registered voters who are also credit union members in support of Udall.
CUNA’s new CEO, Jim Nussle, a former member of Congress from Iowa, called the swing to the GOP a “credit union friendly majority.”
As of mid-morning one day after the elections, the Republicans gained seven seats in the Senate, with two-to-three other races still to close to call. In Louisiana, a run-off will take place in December to elect its senator. In the House, Republicans have seen at least a 13-seat gain, with 19 races still to close to call and one in a runoff.
CUNA’s VP-political affairs, Trey Hawkins, CUNA, state leagues and individual credit unions were involved in 396 overall races, including 357 for the House; of the latter, CU-backed candidates won seats in 336 of those. In the Senate, CUNA’s Credit Union Legislative Action Committee (CULAC) provided support to 29 of the 36 candidates who were on the ballot, 25 of whom won their races (with two races still undecided).
In terms of the 15 races in which CUNA provided independent expenditures and/or partisan communications, CUNA’s SVP Political Affairs Richard Gose explained, “When we make determinations to get involved we look to support those who have been there for credit unions. It’s not for the faint of heart.”
In addition to Udall’s defeat, CU-supporter Bruce Braley also lost his bid to join the Senate. Credit unions won a victory when Mitch McConnell won his seat; CULAC had made a direct expenditure of $300,000 on behalf of McConnell (R-KY), the likely Senate Majority Leader when Congress convenes in January. The race involving California Democrat Pete Aguilar, a former CU employee, has still not been officially called, although Aguilar has a slight lead in results reported to date. Republican Mike Rounds, whom CUNA provided late support for in his bid to represent South Dakota in the Senate, also won.
In all, CUNA spent more than $5.6 million during the most recent election cycle. Additional coverage can be found here. How CULAC-backed candidates did in the 2014 midterms can be seen below.
