Republican candidate for Congress James Comer has received the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s endorsement in his bid to succeed retiring 1st District Representative Ed Whitfield.
The conservative-leaning organization made the announcement Friday after a Comer rally in Paducah. This comes two weeks after Comer received the endorsement of the National Rifle Association. The former state agriculture commissioner also has a more than quarter-million dollar advantage over his nearest primary opponent in terms of cash-on-hand.
"We are proud to be in Paducah to stand with local business leaders and endorse our friend James Comer to help lead [the] fight for good paying jobs in Kentucky," said the Chamber's national political director Rob Engstrom in a statement. "Jamie is a proven and consistent conservative who will help clean up the mess in Washington and get our economy moving again."
Comer is up against Mike Pape, Jason Batts and Miles Caughey in the May 17 Republican primary. Pape, a former field director for Whitfield, has received the 11-term Congressman’s endorsement. Pape used social media to say that the Chamber endorsed Comer because, "he has a history of siding with their pro-amnesty immigration agenda."
"The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is the loudest voice for amnesty within the establishment, and they just bet on gaining one more vote for what will be a renewed push for immigration reform in 2017," Pape said, on Facebook.
Hopkinsville Army veteran Sam Gaskins is the only Democrat running.
This story has been updated.
