The Service Employees International Union (SEIU) has been the top outside spender on Democratic campaigns this election cycle, illustrating how tied to unions President Obama is and how much he will owe them should he win election.
The SEIU has spent $54 million more money on outside campaigns than the pro-Obama super PAC, priorities USA.
“The presidential election is our number one priority this year,” SEIU political director Brandon Davis told the Wall Street Journal.
The SEIU has also contributed millions to the pro-Obama super PAC and that money comes from the paychecks of its membership — the union says its 300,000 members donate an average $7 out of each paycheck paycheck for political activism.
As the Journal notes, this union-backed support could prove pivotal in a state like Ohio, where resources and manpower are needed to to get out the vote, especially among those in union households.
According to the SEIU, its membership has knocked on more than “2.5 million doors in eight battleground states, including 400,000 in Ohio” and has even also spent $4 million on a joint Spanish-language ad campaign with Priorities USA Action, the pro-Obama super PAC.