From showroom to Capitol Hill

Many Congressmen can say they have business experience. But only a handful can say they have dealership experience.

There are seven dealers-turned-politicians in Congress, says Dave Regan, executive vice chairman of legislative affairs at NADA. Although they might appear similar at first glance -- they're all white males, mostly Republican, and largely hail from swing states -- the roles they play in Congress vary.

Regan said having congressmen that know what dealers go through and understand how dealerships operate is valuable to NADA as it advocates for its goals on Capitol Hill. He said the dealers' continued success at the polling booths is no coincidence.

"Any effective dealer is connected with his community, just like a successful congressman is," he said.

Here are profiles of the seven dealers-turned-congressmen followed by some other dealers with political ties.

The only Democratic dealer-turned-politician in Congress, Beyer's political career stretches nearly as far back as his business career. 

Beyer, 66, began in the automotive industry by working at his father's Volvo dealership in Virginia. He and his brother bought the store in 1986 and soon expanded into a dealership group that also sells Kia, Subaru, Volkswagen and Land Rover vehicles.

Beyer's political career began in 1989 when he was elected lieutenant governor of Virginia, where he became known for his efforts on welfare reform and rights for the disabled.

He remained active in politics after leaving office, serving in several roles for the Bill Clinton, John Kerry and Barack Obama campaigns, among others. In 2009, Obama appointed Beyer as U.S. ambassador to Switzerland and Liechtenstein. In that role, he advised the Swiss government against granting asylum to Wikileaks founder Julian Assange.

Beyer, who represents one of the most Democrat districts in the state, was first elected to the U.S. House in 2014 and was re-elected in 2016.

One of the wealthiest representatives in Congress, Buchanan, 65, made his fortune in large part through his auto dealerships. He bought the first of his dealerships, a Honda and Acura store in Florida, in 1992 and continued to acquire new stores until 2006, when he ran for U.S. House. 

He sold several of his dealerships that year, and his Dodge store was among those shut down during Chrysler's 2009 bankruptcy.

Buchanan won his first election narrowly, beating his Democratic opponent with 50.08 percent of the vote. Since then, he has been re-elected four times.

When Republicans took over control of the House in 2011, Buchanan was given a seat on the Ways and Means Committee, where he also sits on subcommittees on trade and health.

With the election of Donald Trump to the presidency, Buchanan sees an opportunity to pass reforms to the U.S. tax code,.

"I write to urge that Congress capitalize on the historic opportunity to fundamentally overhaul the U.S. tax code and jumpstart the economy," Buchanan wrote in a letter to the congressional Republican leadership.

Kelly's automotive sales career began after he received his degree from the University of Notre Dame, where he received a scholarship to play football but had to stop playing because of a knee injury. After graduating, Kelly began working at his father's suburban Pittsburgh Chevrolet-Cadillac dealership. He bought the dealership in the 1990s and later opened Hyundai and Kia stores. 

Kelly's frustrations with the 2008-09 bailouts and bankruptcies of General Motors and Chrysler, and their rejection of thousands of dealers, drove him to run for Congress in 2010. Riding a Republican wave that election cycle, Kelly defeated the Democratic incumbent by about 10 percentage points and would later become a member of the Ways and Means Committee.

As a congressman, the conservative Kelly, 68, has stirred controversy at several points, comparing the EPA to terrorism in 2014 and decrying the day of the Affordable Care Act's contraception mandate as "the day that religious freedom died."

Like Kelly's, Renacci's original 2010 bid for Congress was in large part centered on his views on the auto bailouts.

That year, Renacci, while running for Congress on a small-government platform, was forced to close his Chevrolet dealership in Ohio after losing an appeal to GM.

He put the blame for the closure solely on the Obama administration, saying, "Washington forcing businesses to close is beyond despicable."

Renacci, 58, ended up beating the Democratic incumbent in his district by about 11 percentage points, and he would later go on to serve on the Ways and Means Committee, as well as the House Budget Committee.

Rigell, the owner of Ford and Volvo dealerships, also saw his record as a dealer come into play during his 2010 election, but for different reasons. 

He came under fire from some during his election for selling 138 cars under the so-called cash for clunkers program in 2009, despite criticizing it as "reckless," according to USA Today.

Despite that, Rigell defeated the Democratic incumbent in 2010 by about 11 percentage points and was later placed on the House Committee on Appropriations. 

Rigell, 56, made national headlines during the 2016 election cycle when he became the first Republican representative to denounce GOP nominee Donald Trump, instead endorsing Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson. After Trump's election, Buzzfeed News quoted Rigell as saying Vice President-elect Mike Pence is "an outstanding counterbalance" to Trump.

Shuster owned and operated a dealership out of East Freedom, Pa., about 100 miles east of Pittsburgh. He sold the dealership in 2000 when he ran for Congress, winning his father Bud Shuster's longtime seat.

Shuster has been on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee since taking office in 2001. He became chairman in 2013.

Shuster, 56, figures to play a major role during the Trump administration, as Trump has proposed a massive investment in roads and infrastructure. While the proposal has drawn the ire of some fiscal conservatives who fear it will cause the federal budget deficit to balloon, a spokesman for Shuster told Politico in November that he was "encouraged" by the idea of "addressing transportation."

After the election, some thought Trump might pick Shuster as transportation secretary, but Shuster dismissed the speculation, saying he wasn't interested.

Like Kelly's, Williams' automotive career began following a promising athletic career cut short by injury.

After playing baseball at Texas Christian University, Williams was drafted by the Atlanta Braves. An injury cut short his playing career in the Braves' farm system, so Williams returned to Texas to work with his father at a Chry-sler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram dealership, which he would end up owning.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry appointed Williams to the Texas Motor Vehicle Board in 2002. He became Texas' secretary of state in 2005.

He would springboard off his time in Texas government and in Republican politics to the U.S. House in 2012. Williams, 67, serves on the financial services committee and has served on the transportation committee.

Campbell, 61, was a U.S. representative for California from 2005 until 2015, during which time he was on the budget and financial services committees.

He was elected to the office in 2004 after serving in the California State Assembly and State Senate.

Campbell, who owned several franchises in Southern California, made headlines in Automotive News in 2010 when he sponsored an amendment to the bill that ultimately led to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. His amendment exempted auto dealers from oversight by the agency.

His sponsorship led to an investigation by the Office of Congressional Ethics, which looked into whether fundraisers he held during the bill's passage had an influence on him. Campbell was cleared in 2011.

Riley, 72, was governor of Alabama from 2003 until 2011, first winning narrowly over the Democratic incumbent in 2002. Before that, Riley was a U.S. representative from 1997 until 2003.

Before entering politics, Riley was a businessman who counted a car dealership among the several businesses he established.

While he was governor, Hyun-dai built an assembly plant in Montgomery, Ala., and Honda ex-panded operations in Lincoln.

Biden left a lasting impact on his son, Vice President Joe Biden, who has frequently spoken of him throughout his political career.

The elder Biden raised his son in the blue-collar city of Scranton, Pa. After spending his 20s living a fast-paced lifestyle -- sailing yachts and flying planes -- Biden Sr. fell on somewhat tough times while raising his family. He took several jobs, including as a sales manager at a used-car dealership.

The younger Biden, in his autobiography, recalls his father quitting the job after the owner tossed silver coins on the dance floor at a Christmas party so he could watch his employees struggle to grab them, according to The New York Times.

The elder Biden's stand left a mark on his son, who frequently mentioned his father's dignity and perseverance in speeches.

"My dad always said, "Champ, the measure of a man is not how often he is knocked down, but how quickly he gets up,'" Biden said.