Democracy 21 developed and is fighting to enact a new, alternative way to finance presidential and congressional campaigns, based on matching small contributions with public funds.
- The system would match small individual contributions up to $200 with public funds at a ratio of 6 to 1. Thus, a $200 individual contribution would provide $1,400 to a candidate using the system.
- The new system would empower ordinary Americans and make their contributions far more valuable to federal candidates. The system would free officeholders from the iron-grip of influence-seeking, big money funders.
- The new system is financed not by taxpayers but entirely by corporate lawbreakers and wealthy tax cheats who pay a surcharge to the government on the penalties, fees and settlements they provide o the government for breaking the law.
- There is a growing, nationwide citizen demand for elections free of the taint of influence-buying, special interest money. More and more states and municipalities — from Seattle to New York City to Maryland to Connecticut to Maine — have adopted successful small-donor campaign finance systems.
- The small-donor, public matching funds system (H.R 1) passed the House in 2019 and has 47 sponsors (S. 949) in the Senate.
Fred Wertheimer Statement on Citizens United Decision and Reform Bills Introduced Today
|Press Releases |Money In Politicsby DianeFred Wertheimer Oped for Reuters “Democracy is Drowning in a sea of dark money”
|Op Eds |Money In Politicsby DianeFred Wertheimer: “Who Shot John: The Story of How $777,600 Contribution “Limits” Ended up in The Omnibus Bill”
|Op Eds |Money In Politicsby DianeLetter to President Obama from Campaign Finance Reform Groups on Omnibus Appropriations Bill
|Press Releases |Money In Politicsby DianeReform Groups Urge Congress to Vote No on Omnibus Bill and the Destructive Campaign Finance Provisions
|Press Releases |Money In Politicsby DianeFred Wertheimer Statement on Reid-McConnell “Bipartisan” Deal to Eviscerate Anti-Corruption Campaign Finance Laws
|Press Releases |Money In Politicsby DianeOmnibus Bill Returns Huge Corrupting Contributions to National Parties
|Press Releases |Money In Politicsby DianeReform Groups Urge Members to Vote Against Omnibus Appropriations Bill With Destructive Campaign Finance Provisions
|Press Releases |Money In Politicsby DianeBreaking: Omnibus Bill Returns Huge Corrupting Contributions to National Parties
|Press Releases |Money In Politicsby DianeReform Groups Strongly Oppose Any Appropriations Riders That Will Increase Opportunities to Corrupt Members of Congress
|Press Releases |Money In Politicsby DianeReform Groups Strongly Urge Opposition to Republican Efforts to Use Appropriations Bill to Damage Campaign Finance Laws
|Press Releases |Money In Politicsby DianeReform Groups Urge Senators to Oppose Sen. McConnell’s Efforts to Sneak Campaign Finance Revision into Appropriations Bill
|Press Releases |Money In Politicsby DianeFred Wertheimer for Huffington Post “2014 Election Confirms Citizens United Decision Based on Fundamentally Flawed Premises”
|Op Eds |Money In Politicsby DianeFEC Issues Seriously Flawed Regulations Today to Implement Citizens United, Nearly Five Years After Decision
|Press Releases |Money In Politicsby DianeFormer Supreme Court Justice Stevens Criticizes Supreme Court Decision in McCutcheon Case
|Press Releases |Money In Politicsby Diane