American political campaigns at both the congressional and state levels are dominated by big money — large contributions and donations from a plethora of actors. The inherent problem with campaign financing is the clash of interest groups and their agendas. Most political donors — certainly the big ones — expect favorable policies in return for their generosity. A healthy future for a strong American democracy is one without the pervasive influence of money. As a matter of fact, the city of Seattle has taken drastic measures to do just that. In November 2015, city voters approved the nation’s first Democracy Voucher Program to encourage small private donations from individuals. We at UCSB's CALPIRG, the California Public Interest Research Group, student run and funded, is working to bring this system to the City of Santa Barbara.
Several attempts have been made to regulate campaign financing in the United States. The Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 represented one attempt, but a significant number of amendments to and major provisions in the Act have been struck down by the Supreme Court. The most recent occurred in 2010 in Citizens United v FEC when the Supreme Court affirmed that corporate personhood grants for-profit, nonprofit, and other associations the right to freedom of speech. This protection granted under the First Amendment allows some forms of political organizations to raise unlimited amounts of money and subsequently run political campaigns in favor of or against candidates running for office. In other words, the personhood of the corporation is expressing its opinion, which is protected under the First Amendment. Consequently, the number of so-called Political Action Committees (PACs) has increased dramatically since the landmark case in 2010.
The way money has infiltrated American politics stands in stark contrast to one of the most foundational principles of democracy: one person, one vote. The CALPIRG Democracy campaign is determined to find sustainable solutions and lobby for necessary reforms. We aim to spark concrete changes in campaign financing in Santa Barbara elections. To achieve this, CALPIRG has teamed up with several coalitions that are equally invested toward this goal. CALPIRG urges UCSB students and Santa Barbara residents to get involved.