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 ne of the most controversial aspects of any political season is the role of campaign financing. Over the years laws have been enacted on the state and federal levels to force greater disclosure of contributions, and limit the total amount of direct cash gifts by individuals to political candidates. The resulting guidelines appear complex to the average American, but have also proven to be easily bypassed. Throughout the campaign season you will hear talk of "soft money" contributions, special interest spending against a candidate and the role of Political Action Committees in providing financial support.
Knowing how candidates are financing their campaigns can often tell you more about their fundamental commitments than a ream of position papers. The VoteUtah partners encourage you to use the following search tools to review the campaign financial inner workings of this year's candidates.
For candidates for federal office (President, U.S. Senate
and House of Representatives) you can use the records of the
Federal
Election Commission. These records are organized by office,
and then broken down by state. There are mandatory filing
deadlines for candidates to disclose their income and expenses
during periods leading up to the election.
Candidates for state office in Utah (Governor, Attorney General and state legislative races, among others) must file reports with the Lieutenant Governor's office. While less comprehensive than the FEC reporting process, the state reports provide an overview of candidate financing prior to the election.
Following the money is just another step along the path of making informed decisions as a voter.
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