Chamber of Commerce endorses California Democrat

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, a group historically aligned with Republicans, is backing a Democrat in a competitive House race.

The national business group on Wednesday endorsed Rep. Scott Peters (D-Calif.) for a third term over Republican Denise Gitsham, who’s making her first run for office.

“We need more pragmatic and commonsense leaders like Scott Peters,” the Chamber’s senior vice president and national political director Rob Engstrom said in a statement.

{mosads}Peters was one of only 28 House Democrats to vote in favor of “fast-track” trade promotion authority last year to expedite congressional consideration of trade deals negotiated by President Obama.

The Chamber’s pro-trade position stands in contrast to GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump’s strident opposition to trade deals. 

Peters holds a 66 percent rating from the Chamber of Commerce, compared with most other Democratic colleagues who score near 30 percent or less.

“I appreciate this endorsement because it recognizes my ability to work with both political parties to break through the gridlock and get things done,” Peters said in a statement.

The Chamber has endorsed a handful of other Democrats for reelection in 2016, including Rep. Brad Ashford (D-Neb.) — who is also in a competitive race this cycle — and Reps. Jim Costa (Calif.), Henry Cuellar (Texas), and Kyrsten Sinema (Ariz.).