Category Archives: campaign finance

“Koch-Linked Nonprofit Must Disclose Donors, Settlement Mandates”

September 20, 2019, 3:16 pmcampaign finance, tax law and election lawRick Hasen

Bloomberg: A nonprofit linked to the conservative Koch organization that spent more than $20 million to elect Republican congressional candidates must disclose its donors, according to a settlement with the Federal Election Commission.The now-defunct Americans for Job Security (AJS), said … Continue reading

“Tech takes over political fundraising”

September 20, 2019, 7:15 amcampaign finance, campaignsRick Hasen

Axios: Small-dollar political donations have exploded this campaign cycle, thanks in large part to technology that makes it possible for candidates to target potential donors with cheap ads and easy-to-use online donation platforms.Why it matters: A surge in fundraising… Continue reading

“Political Fundraiser Pleads Guilty To Fraud”

September 19, 2019, 7:19 amcampaign finance, campaigns, chicaneryRick Hasen

ProPublica: In one of the first Justice Department cases of its kind, Maryland political consultant Kelley Rogers pleaded guilty to wire fraud on Tuesday for operating multiple fraudulent political action committees that raised money from donors for conservative causes… Continue reading

“Democracy vouchers are supposed to be an answer, but big money is swamping Seattle’s elections”

September 18, 2019, 9:12 pmcampaign finance, campaignsRick Hasen

Seattle Times: What Yang’s talking about was Initiative 122, which Seattle voters approved in 2015 as an experiment in public financing of elections. Through a property tax it gives every Seattle voter $100 worth of “democracy vouchers” to… Continue reading

“In post-Greitens Missouri, new campaign fundraising rules going into effect”

September 18, 2019, 7:03 amcampaign financeRick Hasen

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

“Checkers Explains Corruption”

September 16, 2019, 8:30 pmcampaign financeRick Hasen

New documentary video series from Ciara Torres-Spelliscy.

“Montgomery County Public Elections Fund Successfully Encourages and Empowers Small Donors”

September 13, 2019, 2:38 pmcampaign financeRick Hasen

Release: A report released today by Maryland PIRG Foundation finds that the Montgomery County Public Election Fund is working as intended, and is encouraging more small donor participation. The report finds that individual donors participated at a higher rate when… Continue reading

Kentucky: “Jury convicts dad of Alison Lundergan Grimes for giving illegally to Senate campaign”

September 13, 2019, 7:26 amcampaign finance, campaigns, chicaneryRick Hasen

The Lexington Herald-Leader reports.

“PACs that raise small-dollar donations — and spend mostly on themselves — are proliferating”

September 12, 2019, 7:56 amcampaign finance, campaigns, chicaneryRick Hasen

Troubling trend detailed by CPI.

“Trump’s critics are targeting his donors, sparking fears of a backlash against disclosure”

September 10, 2019, 7:32 amcampaign financeRick Hasen

WaPo reports.

“The Constituent-Engagement Effect of Small Donor Public Financing: A Statistical Comparison of City Council (2017) and State Assembly (2018) Fundraising in New York City”

September 9, 2019, 8:53 pmcampaign financeRick Hasen

New Brennan Center study: Download the Report Read the AppendixThis spring New York enacted an historic law committing to establish voluntary public financing for state elections. The governor and legislative leaders appointed nine commissioners to design the system… Continue reading

“How Elizabeth Warren Raised Big Money Before She Denounced Big Money”

September 9, 2019, 8:14 amcampaign finance, campaignsRick Hasen

NYT reports.

Lots of Election Law/Non-Profit Tax Law Issues Raised in Major Jerry Falwell Jr. Expose in Politico

September 9, 2019, 7:37 amcampaign finance, campaigns, tax law and election lawRick Hasen

Quite a read. In January, the Wall Street Journal reported that in 2014 and 2015, Michael Cohen hired Gauger’s side business, RedFinch LLC, to rig online polls in Donald Trump’s favor while he considered a run for the presidency. Gauger’s… Continue reading

“Congressional Democrats plan to launch inquiry into Trump’s alleged role in scheme to silence affair accusations”

September 2, 2019, 4:47 pmcampaign finance, chicaneryRick Hasen

WaPo: House Democrats plan to make President Trump’s alleged involvement in a 2016 scheme to silencetwo women who claimed they had affairs with him a major investigative focus this fall, picking up where federal prosecutors left off in a … Continue reading