Democracy:

Campaign Finance Reform:

The campaign finance system today operates like an exclusionary wealth primary, which pre-selects the candidates who can raise and spend the most money. Consider the facts:

1) The winners of the wealth primary almost invariably go on to win election. Ninety-two percent of U.S. House of Representative winners and eighty-eight percent of U.S. Senate winners first win the wealth primary - outraising and outspending their opponents - and then go on to win election.

2) The vast majority of campaign money comes from a tiny and wealthy segment of our society. Less than one percent of the population contributes more than eighty percent of all money in federal elections in amounts of $200 or more. A 1998 survey found that the vast majority of such contributors are wealthy white men with annual family incomes higher than $100,000.

3) Elections are now auctioned to the highest bidder. A candidate running for the U.S. House of Representatives today must have, on average, half a million dollars in order to win. A U.S. Senate candidate must have $4.6 million.

4) The wealth primary barrier maintains its strongest presence in communities of color. A recent study showed that the nation's top 100 communities in terms of campaign contributions are eighty percent white and that each of these communities gave an average of $1.4 million. In contrast, the 100 communities with the highest concentration of people of color each gave an average of $7,000.