02/26/2008
CONTACT: Mike Diegel, 202-314-2004
Wins unanimous support in member survey
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The National Federation of Independent Business, the nation's leading small business association, today announced that it has endorsed Jon Elrod in the special election for U.S. Representative in Indiana's 7th Congressional District.
The endorsement comes from NFIB's Save America's Free Enterprise (SAFE) Trust, the organization's political action committee, and is based on responses to a candidate questionnaire, prior voting records and personal interviews to evaluate the candidates' views on legislative issues affecting small business.
"Jon Elrod is the proven small business candidate in this race," said Lisa Goeas, NFIB's vice president, political. "The positions he has taken as a local leader, state legislator, and those he espouses as a candidate for Congress indicate his strong support for small business, specifically in keeping taxes low, giving small business owners increased access to health care, and reducing burdensome regulations."
"As a partner in a small law firm, he knows what it takes to run a small business, and his legal practice is focused on helping small businesses deal with tax and legal issues," she added.
Elrod's opponent, André Carson, did not return NFIB's Congressional Candidate Questionnaire, and his Web site does not indicate any initiatives he would take to support small business as a member of Congress. In a survey of NFIB members in the 7th District, 100 percent of respondents supported Elrod.
Goeas also noted that Elrod supports making current tax cuts permanent, simplifying the tax code and controlling government spending. His positions on healthcare, NFIB members' biggest concern, includes support for measures that make access to quality healthcare more affordable by allowing small businesses to pool together, expanding health savings accounts and making healthcare costs more fully deductible
The endorsement puts the considerable grassroots support of the district's small businesses behind the Elrod campaign. Small business owners and their employees vote in high numbers and are known for actively recruiting friends, family members and acquaintances to go to the polls.
