After Two-Month Hiatus, Credit Union Trade PACs Resume Political Giving
Campaign contributions were paused after the attacks on the U.S. Capitol in January.
CUNA and NAFCU will resume making campaign contributions, after a two-month hiatus following the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.
“After much consideration, it’s clear our members want to continue to support our electoral work while ensuring candidates supported represent the integrity and values of the credit union movement,” Jeff Olson, chairman of the Credit Union Legislative Action Committee and president/CEO of the Dakota Credit Union Association, said.
CULAC consistently ranks among the most generous trade group committees.
NAFCU, which operates a much smaller PAC, also paused its political contributions, according to Chad Adams, NAFCU’s director of political affairs.
“We did temporarily suspend political giving after the events at the Capitol,” he said. “Subsequent to that statement, we held robust discussions in consultation with NAFCU’s PAC Committee and member contributors to ensure we continued to move forward in a deliberate and transparent way that reflects the best of our members and the credit union industry.” He added that NAFCU made its first political contribution of the year last week.
CULAC’s trustees also re-affirmed its commitment not to contribute to presidential campaigns, Olson said.
Although it did not make contributions during January and February, CUNA continued to accept donations to CULAC. In the first two months of the year, CULAC received almost $194,000 in contributions and had more than $725,000 on hand, according to Federal Election Commission records.
NAFCU’s committee also continued to accept contributions, collecting $25,159 during the first two months of the year, according to the FEC. It had about $47,000 on hand at the end of February.
Unlike some PACs, CUNA and NAFCU officials did not make blanket statements that they will not support members of Congress who voted against the Electoral College vote counting on Jan. 6.
For the 2020 election cycle, CUNA was the 12th largest contributor to the 147 House members and senators who objected to the counting of the electoral votes that gave President-elect Joe Biden his victory, according to a tally kept by the Center for Responsive Politics. CUNA contributed a total of $679,500 to the candidates, the center said.
CUNA’s two-month hiatus stands in sharp contrast to the first two months of 2019. In the first two months of that year, CUNA contributed $336,500 to congressional candidates, according to the FEC.
During the first two months of 2019, NAFCU contributed $24,000 to political candidates.
Other trade groups and companies recently announced they too would resume making campaign contributions, following a delay resulting from the Jan. 6 insurrection.
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce said it would evaluate its support for candidates “based on their position on issues important to the Chamber, as well as their demonstrated commitment to governing and rebuilding our democratic institutions.”
The Chamber said it would not stop contributing to candidates solely based on their decision to oppose the counting of the Electoral College votes.
“There is a meaningful difference between a member of Congress who voted no on the question of certifying the votes of certain states and those who engaged and continue to engage in repeated actions that undermine the legitimacy of our elections and institutions,” the Chamber said.
On the other hand, Microsoft announced that for the 2022 election cycle its PAC will suspend all contributions to members who voted against the counting of the electoral votes.