Democrats introduce constitutional amendment to overturn corporate campaign finance laws
Jack Birle
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A group of Democratic lawmakers in the House have introduced a constitutional amendment that would overturn campaign finance laws established in the 2010 Supreme Court ruling Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission.
The “Democracy For All” amendment would allow Congress and states to “regulate and impose reasonable viewpoint-neutral limitations on the raising and spending of money by candidates and others to influence elections.”
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The effort is spearheaded by Reps. Adam Schiff (D-CA), Dean Phillips (D-MN), Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), and Jim McGovern (D-MA). The bill also has more than 80 Democratic representatives co-signing the proposed amendment.
In Citizens United, a 5-4 majority decision held that Congress and states cannot make laws restricting how companies may donate to political campaigns. It ruled that limitations would violate their free speech rights protected under the First Amendment.
“The flow of unrestricted corporate and dark money into our elections has dangerously eroded the American people’s faith in our democracy, and in our government’s ability to deliver for them and their families. Citizens United was one of the most egregious enablers of special interest money, but it was only the latest in a long line of Supreme Court cases that opened the floodgates. To truly rein in dark money, we must amend our Constitution,” Schiff said in a statement. “The Democracy for All Amendment will close legal loopholes that wealthy megadonors, corporations, and special interest groups have exploited for far too long, and return power to the people once and for all.”
Corporate spending in the 2022 midterm elections reached all-time highs for congressional elections, with over $2 billion being spent, per OpenSecrets.
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In order to be considered for ratification by the states, the amendment will need to pass with two-thirds approval in the House and Senate or be proposed at a constitutional convention called by two-thirds of states. To implement the amendment, two-thirds of state legislatures or state constitutional conventions would need to ratify it.
The most recent constitutional amendment to be ratified was the 27th Amendment. It prohibits changes to lawmakers’ salaries from taking effect until the next Congress. The 27th Amendment was first introduced in 1789 and was ratified in 1992.