WASHINGTON, D.C. — A U.S. Supreme Court ruling is poised to reshape the way federal campaigns are financed — and how voters may experience election season.
The court has erased long-standing limits on how much political parties can spend in coordination with their own candidates, saying those restrictions violated free speech.
In a 6-3 ruling handed down last week, the Supreme Court struck down decades-old limits that capped how much political parties could spend in coordination with their own candidates.
“Under current election law, PACs and super PACs can raise and spend as much on behalf of candidates, but they can’t coordinate with them. Whereas state parties had a limited amount that they could raise and spend, but they could be coordinated with candidates,” said Dr. Todd Belt, professor and director of the Political Management Master’s Program at George Washington University. “And this actually takes off that cap for those state parties.”
Political analyst Dr. Todd Belt said the main reason those limits were put in place under the Federal Elections Commission Act in the 1970s was because of corruption.
“There was a feeling that if you allowed too much money to go to the parties and then they could direct it to their candidates, then that could cause corruption,” said Belt. “And in turn you’d see politicians making decisions that weren’t in the best interests of the people they represented.”
Supporters argue the ruling strengthens First Amendment protections. Opponents warn it could hand wealthy donors even greater influence over elections. But Belt said money flowing through established political parties instead of temporary outside groups could actually increase accountability.
“It’s actually a better thing for the money to go to the state parties, which stay around a bit, and to the candidates themselves, because they are more responsible about what they have to say because they have to be back in front of the voters at the next election cycle,” said Belt.
That being said, not everyone in Congress is convinced bigger campaign war chests are the answer.
“I, however, would very much be for us looking to limit campaign expenditures and funding and fundraising,” said Rep. Dan Meuser, R-Pa.
With the spending limits now erased, candidates will have greater control over party dollars — and voters can likely expect even more campaign ads as the race for the midterms accelerates.
