Reform Campaign Finance To Strengthen Small Donors

The system for financing American elections is rigged to amplify the influence of powerful and wealthy individuals as both donors and candidates. Facing increasingly expensive campaigns, politicians have become dependent on wealthy supporters. Even while governing, they must raise thousands of dollars a day. The average cost of successful congressional races has doubled since 1990 to $1 million for House races and $8 million for Senate races. The best-financed candidates won in over 90 percent of races in 2004. [CRP, 2004 and 2007]

John Edwards believes that the first step toward getting the policies we want is to put regular people back in charge of Washington. As president, he will

Reform Presidential Campaign Finance Laws to Empower Small Donors: Analysts believe that we are on track to spend a $1 billion on the 2008 presidential election. Few top-tier presidential candidates accept public financing, and candidates rely on wealthy, well-connected "bundlers" to help them raise tens of millions of dollars. The Internet has enabled a boom in small donations from regular people, but wealthy donors and bundlers still supplied nearly 80 percent of dollars contributed to candidates in the first quarter of 2007. Edwards will create a new Grassroots Presidential Financing System to empower regular Americans in a potentially universal public financing system. It will match small donations under $100 by eight to one, making two $100 donations as valuable to a campaign as a single $1,000 donation. (Each $100 donation would receive an $800 match, making them worth $900 each. The $1,000 donation would also receive an $800 match and be worth $1,800.) Edwards will also reduce the maximum contribution from $2,300 to $1,000 per person to better reflect the incomes of most Americans and update the campaign spending limits to attract all candidates into the system. [N.Y. Times, 1/23/07; CFI, 2007]

Provide Full Public Financing in Congressional Campaigns: There is no public financing for congressional races, favoring candidates who are incumbents, have personal wealth, or have strong support from the wealthy and their corporate interests. Edwards will create full public financing for House and Senate races. Candidates who raise a certain number of $5 contributions will receive equal public financing and air time, while additional "fair fight" funds will help candidates facing self-financed campaigns and independent expenditures. States with these models—like Maine and Arizona—have reported more political accountability and candidates from more diverse backgrounds. [Brennan Center et al, 2007]