Campaign Finance
Current Landscape

Sixteen states offer public funds to political candidates.  Fourteen (Arizona, Connecticut, Florida, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Wisconsin) have some form of public funding system for gubernatorial races.  Eleven (Arizona, Connecticut, Florida, Hawaii, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Jersey, Rhode Island, and Wisconsin) provide public funding for legislative and/or statewide office candidates. Two (New Mexico and North Carolina) offer public funding to various other offices.  Ten other states offer minimal forms of public finance, usually through a small check-off contribution on tax returns.

For the current status of state campaign laws, see Common Cause, Public Financing in the States; Center for State Innovation, Public Financing of Elections (2011)

 

Learn More

The best sources on campaign finance, including developments and  reforms at the State level, include the Brennan Center for Justice; the Center for State Innovation; Common Cause; and the Center for Government Studies

The Basics

In a political system already dominated by monied interests, the Supreme Court's 2010 decision in "Citizens United" has made it even easier for those interests to spend unlimited amounts of money on direct campaigns to elect or defeat candidates.  This equation of spending with free speech puts ordinary Americans at a huge disadvantage, but does not foreclose the possibility of reform.  Public financing can level the playing field by providing qualified candidates enough money to be competitive.  Spending disclosure laws can shed light on the source of political contributions.

Recent Research Highlights

Mapping Public Financing in American Elections (2009)

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Money, Power and the American Legislative Exchange Council (August 2011)

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Public Campaign Financing : Michigan – Driving Towards Collapse? (2008)

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Public Campaign Financing : Minnesota – Damming Big Money in the Land of 10,000 Lakes (2008)

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Public Campaign Financing : New Jersey Legislature – A Pilot Project Takes Flight (2008)

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Public Campaign Financing : Wisconsin – Showing Its Age (2008)

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Public Campaign Financing in Florida: A Program Sours (2009)

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Public Financing in North Carolina Judiciary (2009)

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Public Financing of Elections, 2011

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Small Donor Matching Funds: The NYC Election Experience (2010)

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