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An Introduction to Federal Campaign Finance
Campaign finance plays a central role in the democratic process. Elections canât happen without campaigns, and â to state the obvious â running a campaign costs money. Lots of it. (Political campaigns at the state and federal levels have become much more expensive in recent years.) So where does all the money come from? It may be a daunting question, but itâs an important one to ask in our effort to become more informed citizens. The collection of laws that govern how campaigns are funded is often referred to as the campaign finance system. But in truth, âsystemâ may be a bit of a misnomer â at least if âsystemâ…
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A Deeper Dive: Citizens United, Super PACs, and Dark Money
In our introduction to federal campaign finance, we discussed the landmark Supreme Court case Citizens United v. FEC, which caused substantial waves in the world of campaign finance. Though it has now been more than 13 years since this case was decided, it is important to understand how this decision has influenced the topics and issues at play today. What was the case actually about? Citizens United is the name of a nonprofit organization that created a political documentary called “Hillary: The Movie.” This film was designed to criticize presidential candidate and then-Senator Hillary Clinton. It was scheduled to be released right before the Democratic primary elections in January 2008,…
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Navigating Political Ads: How to Be an Informed Citizen When Lying Is Legal
During election season, political advertisements seem to be everywhere we look. Though some of us may feel a fervent desire to ignore them, itâs not possible to completely escape their reach. Nor should we tune them out entirely, since they present opportunities to learn about candidates and hold our elected officials accountable. Political ads are clearly designed to influence us in a specific way (usually to convince us to vote for or against a certain candidate). The questions we should ask ourselves about the ads we see or hear include: Who is trying to influence us? (i.e., Who paid for this ad?) and, What is their objective? (i.e., What are…
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A Brief Exploration of Potential Campaign Finance Reforms
We have recently explored several of the core issues surrounding campaign finance that undermine accountability and transparency in our elections. After learning about (i) the disproportionate impact of very wealthy Americans on policy outcomes, (ii) the Citizens United case and consequent rise of super PACs and dark money, and (iii) the challenges with regulating online political ads, it is easy to be disheartened and feel pessimistic about the possibility of change. But the truth is, many Americans of diverse political ideologies support campaign finance reforms. If we work together, small acts of advocacy could go a long way in encouraging elected officials to make change happen. In this final piece, we’ll…
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HR1/S1 â the For the People Act: Campaign Finance Reforms
HR1/S1, the For the People Act, is a democracy reform bill that was reintroduced in the House of Representatives in early January 2021. It passed in early March and now awaits a vote in the Senate. These documents examine some of the important measures in this bill related to campaign finance reforms. To download the one-page highlights document, click here or on the image below under âHighlights.â To download the in-depth four-page document, click here or on one of the images below under âIn Depth.â Highlights In Depth