On the federal level, efforts are underway to overhaul the outdated Presidential campaign financing program as well as to introduce Voter-Owned Elections for U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate races. In both instances, elected officials from North Carolina are helping to lead these reform efforts.

 

Campaign Financing for U.S. House & Senate

Federal policy is created by our elected officials in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives. Recent debates on the economy, healthcare reform, financial regulation, the environment and other issues all illustrate how vulnerable these policies are to the influence of big money industry donors. Because of this, many people have called for reform in the way we finance federal races, including Congressman Walter Jones (R) from the 3rd Congressional District in NC, who is a primary sponsor of the Fair Elections Now Act (FENA), a bill that would establish an optional Voter-Owned Elections program for U.S. House and Senate races. So far, NC Representatives David Price (D), Brad Miller (D), Larry Kissell (D) and Mel Watt (D) have all joined Jones in signing on to FENA.

 

FENA is expected to be addressed in both chambers during 2010. Democracy NC Advocates were instrumental in convincing NC Representatives to support the bill and we remain a strong advocate for its passage. Sign up for our email alerts if you'd like to be a part of this initiative and take action when the time comes.

 

Download a summary of the Fair Elections Now Act here.

 

Presidential Campaign Financing

Public financing of Presidential candidates was first proposed in 1907 by President Theodore Roosevelt, who also sought a ban on private contributions. The first public funding program for Presidential elections did not debut until 1976, however, under the administration of the Federal Election Commission. Through this program, qualifying Presidential candidates receive federal government funds to pay for valid campaign expenses in both the primary and general elections. National political parties also receive federal money for their nominating conventions. There have been several court challenges to the program since its inception, but the U.S. Supreme Court has affirmed the provisions of the program in two separate suits. There have also been some minor adjustments to the program since its debut, but the program's funding levels have remained essentially the same for over 30 years — meaning its ability to finance a national political campaign is way out of line with the reality of what a presidential campaign costs these days. This gap has caused candidates to opt out of the program, as Barack Obama did in 2008, and led to calls for reform so that Presidential campaign financing remains viable.

 

Congressman David Price (D), from the 4th Congressional District in NC, has introduced legislation (the Presidential Funding Act) to update and improve the current system so that public financing continues to be a realistic option for modern-day Presidential campaigns. Democracy NC supports this effort and urges our Advocates to support it as well.

We are proud that North Carolina's elected officials are leading the way in federal campaign finance reform!