Campaign Finance Reform

Obama’s Operation May Become the Model of Fundraising
By Emily Cadei and Shawn Zeller, CQ Staff

The one thing that can be counted on when it comes to political campaigns is they inevitably cost more with each election.

In 1992, for example, President George H.W. Bush and then-Arkansas Gov. Bill Clinton spent a total of just over $200 million in their race for the presidency. Eight years later, when George W. Bush defeated then Vice President Al Gore, the costs topped out at more than $300 million.  read more »

WASHINGTON — Turning to campaign promises in which he pledged sweeping ethics restrictions, President-elect Barack Obama will bar lobbyists from helping to pay the costs of his transition to power or working for it in any area in which they have represented clients in the last year, his transition team said Tuesday.

Mr. Obama’s aides indicated that they expected the rules to apply to his inauguration as well as the transition, but said they had yet to make a final decision on how the inauguration would be paid for.  read more »

Pro-Reform Majority in the New York State Senate: For the first time since 1964, Democrats won control of the New York State Senate. By the narrowest of margins, 32-30, there appears to be a pro-reform majority in the Senate . The State Assembly (House) passed a public financing bill last June. One NY advocate told me this morning that their hope is to try to win a new public financing bill in the legislature in early 2009 – making it one of the first acts of the new legislature. It is a bold plan – especially in view of the huge budget deficit New York faces.  read more »

The following statement was issued by the Brennan Center for Justice, the Campaign Legal Center, Common Cause, Democracy 21, the League of Women Voters, Public Citizen and U.S. PIRG. The statement is followed by the groups' government integrity reform agenda for the 111th Congress:
Our organizations worked hard to pass the landmark ethics and lobbying reforms that were enacted in the 110th Congress. At the time, we said that our next major battle would be to reform the way federal campaigns are financed.  read more »

The presidential election held on Tuesday has made clear that we must repair the presidential public financing system. Our organizations will join with other reform groups to work hard to accomplish this goal in the next Congress.

We need to restore and revitalize a system that served our country well for more than two decades until it became outdated because Congress failed to take the steps necessary to adapt the system to changing times.  read more »

House Winners Raised $1.1 million (median) through October 15; Senate Winners Raised $5.6 million

House and Senate Democratic Party Committees Had Huge Advantages: House Party Spent $1 million or more in 38 Races Won 25 (Three still undecided)

Money and Competition Went Hand in Hand
The Campaign Finance Institute today released its first post-election tables on money in the 2008 House and Senate elections. The released material, which omits data on 4 Senate and 5 House races not yet “called”, includes:  read more »

The presidential election held on Tuesday has made clear that we must repair the presidential public financing system. Our organizations will join with other reform groups to work hard to accomplish this goal in the next Congress.

We need to restore and revitalize a system that served our country well for more than two decades until it became outdated because Congress failed to take the steps necessary to adapt the system to changing times.  read more »