Honest Elections

Big money weakens our democratic institutions, undermines confidence in government, and excludes the vast majority of citizens from seeking public office. Strong campaign finance laws are critical to protect the integrity of local elections — our elections. Oregon is one of only 5 states with no limits on political campaign contributions. Candidates and public officials have become unduly beholden to the special interests that contribute big money. Campaign spending in Oregon has skyrocketed by a factor of 13 (1,300%) since 1996. Picture Picture The State Integrity Investigation of the Center for Public Integrity in November 2015 graded Oregon an overall "F" in systems to avoid government corruption. Oregon ranked 2nd worst of the 50 states in control of "Political Financing," beating only Mississippi. Conversely, the Koch Brothers-Funded so-called "Institute for Free Speech" in March 2018 ranked Oregon #1 in America for having the "best" system of campaign finance regulation -- no limits on contributions at all. The Koch Brothers and their billionaire friends really like that.