Unions Continue to Fund Democrat Incumbants

Arkansas has one of the lowest rates of union membership in the country, but one could hardly tell it by looking at the campaign contributions to Democrats in the state?s congressional delegation. According to the latest figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, only 4.8 percent of Arkansas workers belong to unions. Only South Carolina and North Carolina have lower figures. For the three democrat congressment, organized labor has been the leading source of political-action-committee: Reps. Mike Ross ($945,500), Marion Berry ($682,200) and Vic Snyder ($495,000). Berry's next biggest source was agribusiness with $548,677

Unions have reasons for wanting to make sure that Democrats from Arkansas hold on to their congressional seats, political analysts say. First and foremost, they want Democrats to once again be the majority party in Congress, so that unions will have an easier time advancing organized labor?s agenda. Campaign contributions are given with the expectation that those receiving them "will carry water on their behalf," said Sheila Krumholz of the Center for Responsive Politics, a nonpartisan research group. [Arkansas Democrat Gazette 10/8/06]