Category Archives: campaign finance

“The Supreme Court is Putting Democracy at Risk”

July 1, 2021, 2:21 pmcampaign finance, Supreme Court, Voting Rights ActRick Hasen

I have written this guest essay for the New York Times. It begins: In two disturbing rulings closing out the Supreme Court’s term, the court’s six-justice conservative majority, over the loud protests of its three-liberal minority, has shown itself hostile… Continue reading

“Toyota leads companies in election-objector donations”

June 28, 2021, 7:25 amcampaign finance, chicaneryRick Hasen

Axios: Nearly three-dozen corporate PACs have donated at least $5,000 to Republicans who objected to certifying the 2020 election, yet Toyota leads by a substantial margin.Why it matters: Following Jan. 6, huge segments of corporate America rethought their political-giving programs.… Continue reading

Bob Stern Gives Oral History of the California Political Reform Act to the FPPC

June 22, 2021, 7:41 amcampaign financeRick Hasen

You can watch here:

“Two dark money groups shut down following CREW complaints”

June 22, 2021, 7:38 amcampaign finance, chicaneryRick Hasen

Matt Corley writes.

“Letter: Campaign Finance Regulations and Public Policy”

June 11, 2021, 10:58 amcampaign financeRick Hasen

Martin Gilens, Shawn Patterson Jr., & Pavielle Haines in APSR: Despite a century of efforts to constrain money in American elections, there is little consensus on whether campaign finance regulations make any appreciable difference. Here we take advantage of… Continue reading

Campaign Finance Ruling in Canada Relies in Part on a “Structural” Inference

June 11, 2021, 7:36 amcampaign finance, comparative election lawRick Hasen

The following is a guest post from Yasmin Dawood: Thanks very much to Rick for the invitation to write this guest post. Earlier this week, a lower court in Ontario issued an important campaign finance decision, Working Families … Continue reading

“State GOPs Can’t Explain Millions In ‘Trump Victory’ Cash”

June 9, 2021, 7:05 amcampaign financeRick Hasen

Roger Sollenberger for the Daily Beast: Months after the Federal Election Commission notified several GOP state parties of major gaps in their 2020 fundraising and spending reports, the committees are correcting their numbers—but they still can’t explain why the discrepancies… Continue reading

“On Voting Rights, It Can Cost Companies to Take Both Sides”

June 6, 2021, 8:40 pmcampaign financeRick Hasen

NYT Dealbook: In 2019, there were 51 political spending proposals at S&P 500 companies; none passed, and they received an average of 28 percent support. Last year, of 55 similar proposals, six passed and average support rose to about 35… Continue reading

“Senator Ted Cruz Wins Legal Challenge Over Campaign Finance Rules”

June 4, 2021, 7:38 amcampaign financeRick Hasen

CNS: A federal court in Washington D.C. ruled in favor of Texas Republican Senator Ted Cruz in a lawsuit against the Federal Election Commission challenging a cap on how much money candidates can use after an election to reimburse themselves… Continue reading

“Republicans and Democrats alike are abandoning one of their favorite — and bogus — fundraising gimmicks. A Vegas scammer’s guilty plea has them spooked.”

June 2, 2021, 3:08 pmcampaign financeRick Hasen

Dave Levinthal: Amid late May’s crush of hyperbolic and histrionic political fundraising solicitations, a familiar gimmick, widely used just days ago, has all but disappeared: those messages promising to magically “triple match” or “quadruple match” contributions.What gives?A line buried in… Continue reading

“Dems’ dark-money bid aimed to paint Josh Hawley as an anti-gun lefty”

June 2, 2021, 2:34 pmcampaign finance, chicaneryRick Hasen

Axios: A dark-money group aligned with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer helped pay for deceptive ads aimed at depressing Republican general election turnout in 2018, newly released records show.Why it matters: These contests were decided more than two years ago,… Continue reading

FEC Fines AMI, Owner of National Enquirer, $187,500 For Violating Campaign Finance Laws by Making $150,000 Payment to Karen McDougal to Keep Her Affair with Trump Quiet to Help 2016 Trump Campaign

June 1, 2021, 11:57 amcampaign financeRick Hasen

AMI had already admitted the criminal conduct in the matter, and now settled the fine after a Common Cause complaint. The FEC split on going after others, but we will await the release of more paperwork. Details.

“FEC Complaint Filed Against Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene for Illegal ‘Soft Money’ Solicitation for Super PAC”

May 24, 2021, 9:17 amcampaign financeRick Hasen

Release: Today, Common Cause filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) alleging that Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) violated the ‘soft money’ ban in the Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA) by soliciting unlimited contributions for a super… Continue reading

“Trump, Pelosi, and other fundraising juggernauts just got put on notice by the feds that they could be breaking the law with their spammy ‘5x match’ fundraising gimmicks”

May 20, 2021, 10:07 amcampaign finance, chicaneryRick Hasen

Dave Levinthal for Business Insider: But this wildly popular — and demonstrably bogus — fundraising gimmick could soon be dead. That’s because the Department of Justice on Monday indicated that fraudulent “match” solicitations were one of several misdeeds that factored… Continue reading