SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. Pete Aguilar, a former employee of Arrowhead Credit Union, appears to have claimed the second spot in this week's primary election for California's 31st congressional district.
If Aguilar winds up winning the seat in the general election, he will be the first former credit union executive to serve in Congress, CUNA said. Current U.S. Rep. Mike Michaud, D-Maine, is the only credit union board member to serve in Congress.
California's 31st congressional district has an open seat created by the announced retirement of incumbent Rep. Gary Miller (R), who will be stepping down at the end of his current term. Under state rules, the top two vote-getters in a nonpartisan primary on June 3 move to the general election regardless of party.
Although the final tally is not confirmed, Aguilar is expected to face Republican Paul Chabot in November. According to CUNA, Aguilar narrowly edged Republican Leslie Gooch by just 183 votes for the second spot (17.65% to 17.00%).
"Although some ballots still remain uncounted and [third-place vote getter Lesli Gooch] has yet to concede, it appears increasingly unlikely that she will net enough votes in additional counting to climb into second," CUNA said Friday.
The Credit Union Legislative Action Council (CULAC) is conducting an "independent expenditure" (IE) in support of Aguilar's candidacy. An IE is a paid communication directed to the general public advocating for the election or defeat of a candidate for federal office that must be conducted independently from, and not coordinated in any way with, the candidate being supported.
CULAC is the federal political action committee (PAC) of CUNA.
CULAC is spending $197,189.03 on direct mail and digital advertising, both in English and Spanish. CULAC had previously contributed $10,000 to Aguilar's campaign, and he has strong support from the California Credit Union League and local credit unions.
