WASHINGTON—Credit unions will be watching primaries in seven states this week, with CUNA’s Credit Union Legislative Action Council (CULAC) and respective state leagues backing 48 different candidates.
The primaries are being held over three different days, depending on the state. The candidates to whom credit unions have provided support include 45 races for the House of Representatives and three for the Senate.
Primaries will take place today in Arizona, Kansas, Michigan, Missouri and Washington. Tennessee will hold its primary on Thursday, while Hawaiians’ will vote on Saturday.
Trey Hawkins, VP of political affairs, with CUNA, said credit unions will be paying particular attention to five races, including:
- In Missouri’s first district, credit unions are backing Rep. William Lacy Clay (D-MO), wo is in a touch race with Democratic challenger Cori Bush.
- In Kansas’ first district, credit unions are backing Republican Tracey Mann, who is vying for an open congressional seat.
- In Washington’s 10th congressional district, in which 19 candidates are running, CULAC and the Northwest Credit Union Association are supporting Kristine Reeves (D), who is seeking the seat opened up by the exit of Rep. Denny Heck, who is running for lieutenant governor. In Washington, the top two candidates, regardless of party, go on to run in the November general election. Hawkins said Reeves has been a strong supporter of credit unions in the Washington legislature.
- In Thursday’s primary in Tennessee, credit unions are backing Republican Bill Hagerty, the former U.S. ambassador to Japan, to succeed Sen. Lamar Alexander, who is retiring.
- In Saturday’s primary in Hawaii, credit unions have put their support behind Kaiali’i Kahele, a Democrat, who is running to succeed Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, who is not running for reelection.
CUNA Names New Senior Director of Advocacy
Separately, CUNA has named Damon Smith as its new senior director of advocacy and counsel. CUNA said Smith will contribute to regulatory advocacy issues for the organization, particularly relating to housing policy and finance issues, and that he brings “extensive experience in property law and urban planning, which he gained through several senior public sector positions, work in the private sector and academia.”
“The extensive work that Damon has done in the housing policy and real estate space is impressive and our team looks forward to leaning on his expertise to further support credit unions through meaningful regulatory change,” said CUNA Deputy Chief Advocacy Officer and Senior Counsel Elizabeth Eurgubian in a statement. “We are confident that he will play an instrumental role in our regulatory advocacy efforts as we bring credit union issues to the forefront of federal regulators and the administration.”
Also on the C.V.
Prior to joining CUNA, Smith was the Partner at the Jenner and Block, LLP in Washington, D.C., where he provided counsel to corporations regarding complex matters involving compliance, government regulation and enforcement.
Smith also previously served as the acting general counsel for the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), where he provided legal and policy guidance on a range of programs and activities and set the Department’s litigation strategy and regulatory agenda, CUNA said.
“From his experience at HUD, Smith gained extensive knowledge of banking and consumer regulations impacting the current housing finance environment,” CUNA added.
Smith attended Harvard Law School and holds a bachelor’s degree in English and a master’s degree in urban planning from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.