If there’s one thing that Americans can mostly agree on, it’s that money has too much control over our politics. This sentiment is hardly new, but it has gained new relevance as Americans increasingly question the process of our elections, as well as who we allow to control them.
As the November midterms loom, concerns about electoral legitimacy and campaign integrity have grown sharper. About 60% of Americans are confident that votes will be counted accurately in the coming election. Unfortunately, a recent Supreme Court decision is unlikely to assuage these fears.
On June 30, the Supreme Court struck down the Federal Election Campaign Act’s limits on coordinated spending between parties and their candidates. In effect, this means that political parties are now permitted to spend unlimited amounts of money in direct cooperation with those running for office. Previously, candidates had to seek out political action committee, or PAC, money for large donations. Now, funds from donors can be funneled directly through the Republican and Democratic parties.
This ruling, celebrated by some Republicans — who currently benefit more from billionaire donors — has drawn mixed reactions from political commentators. Proponents argue that allowing parties to coordinate freely with campaigns provides a more efficient political process for both Democrats and Republicans. It’s a fair argument to make, but that efficiency only comes by placing enormous financial and political power in the hands of party insiders and wealthy donors.
Federal law has historically drawn a strict line between independent expenditures, in which a party or group runs ads without the input of a major campaign, and coordinated expenditures, in which the party and campaign share their messaging and political strategy. Until this ruling, a strict limit existed on coordinated spending, driven largely by an attempt to prevent quid pro quo corruption, in which a large donor exchanges favors with a candidate, usually in return for favorable legislation.
To provide an illustration of how this actually works, previously a single donor could only give up to $7,000 to a Senate candidate. But, after this ruling, that same donor can now give tens of thousands more to the party instead, which will then hand it over to be used in coordination with the candidate’s campaign. In short, large donors now have much more power over campaigns and a greater ability to influence elections.
This concentration of money in the two main parties also has a strangulating effect on third-party candidates. With both the Republican and Democratic parties increasingly unpopular among Americans, a record 45% of people are now identifying as independent. Alternative options for disaffected voters like the Green Party and Libertarian Party will be significantly weakened, having to directly compete with the financial juggernauts of the RNC and DNC for every second of airtime. If you’ve ever seen a rare ad from a third party, after this ruling, that might have been your last time.
This is all to say that this Supreme Court ruling will entrench and empower the United States’ two-party hegemony at a time when nearly 60% of both Republican and Democratic Americans dislike their own party, while also strengthening billionaires and other wealthy donors’ capacity to impact elections.
Only time will tell just how much this ruling will change campaigning in America. For Americans who are already skeptical of the electoral process, the fact that the loudest voices in the room are increasingly the wealthiest is sure to be a bitter disappointment.
In truth, though, it hasn’t changed one fundamental rule of politics — money buys votes. Instead, this November, America will just be more honest about it.
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