United States Capitol dome silhouette and the national flags of U.S. rounding Washington Monument – Washington D.C. (Image: Shutterstock).
On Tuesday, CUNA and its federal political action committee CULAC announced it will spend more than $2.5 million to support eight "credit union champions" running in elections for spots in the U.S. Senate and House of Representative this November. With Tuesday's announcement, it brings the total of campaign spending to at least $6.5 million so far this year.
According to CUNA, the new multi-million dollar spend follows more than $433,000 in spending for campaign ads during the primaries.
CUNA officials said the $2.5 million announced Tuesday will go toward targeted political ads supporting the following candidates:
- Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.)
- Rep Don Bacon (R-Neb.)
- Rep. Sanford Bishop (D-Ga.)
- Rep Ashley Hinson (R-Iowa)
- Rep. Annie Kuster (D-N.H.)
- Rep. Elaine Luria (D-Va.)
- Rep. Chris Pappas (D-N.H.)
- Rep. David Valadao (R-Calif.)
"CUNA is committed to ensuring that candidates who champion credit unions' mission to enhance financial well-being for all, whether Democrat or Republican, can count on the credit union movement when it comes to winning close races," CUNA Deputy Chief Advocacy Officer for Political Action Trey Hawkins said. "Our ads are designed to educate voters on why these pro-credit union candidates deserve their support."
CULAC works with state leagues to identify, vet and support congressional candidates who support credit unions.
"We are proud of our bipartisan track record of backing pro-credit union candidates in hundreds of races each cycle," Hawkins said. "We look forward to celebrating with this year's candidates on November 9th and to welcoming them to the 118th Congress in January."
According to CUNA, CULAC and state leagues supported 333 credit union candidates during the midterm primaries with a 96% success rate.
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Michael Ogden
Editor-in-Chief at CU Times. To connect, email at [email protected]. As Editor-in-Chief of CU Times since 2016, Michael Ogden has led the editorial team in all aspects of content strategy and execution, including the creation of the publication’s exclusive and proprietary research database of the credit union industry’s economic landscape. Under Michael’s leadership, CU Times has successfully shifted to an all-digital editorial product with new focuses on the payments, fraud, lending and regulatory beats. Most recently, he introduced a data-focused editorial product for subscribers that breaks down credit union issues into hard data, allowing for a deeper and more factual narrative for readers. In 2024, he launched the "Shared Accounts With CU Times" podcast, which offers a fresh, inside-the-newsroom perspective through interviews with leaders from the credit union industry and the regulatory world. He dives into pressing credit union issues, while revealing the personalities working behind-the-scenes to push the credit union world forward. His background includes years as a radio and TV anchor/reporter and a public relations and digital/social media manager, where he covered the food and music industries, as well as cooperatives and credit unions. Over the years, he has launched numerous exclusive video and podcast series, including a successful series of interactive backstage interviews with musicians at music festivals, showcasing his social media and live streaming production skills.
