![]() Public financing, however, allows ordinary constituents-not just the superwealthy or politically elite-to fund candidates through small donations, with upper limits as low as $50. Half of all contributions to congressional candidates in 2016 came from fewer than 16,000 donors 5-a tiny fraction of the population, and a highly affluent one. 4 Unfortunately, this is largely the current reality in the United States. If that money comes principally from wealthy individuals and special interests, then it is to those individuals and interests that elected officials are likely to feel particularly obligated. It is an inescapable fact that campaigns require money to get their messages to voters. In other words, at all levels of government-state, local, or federal-reformers should work to make elected officials more accountable to the people they represent, as well as more able to work effectively on their behalf. Yet simply limiting undemocratic forces should not be the singular goal of democratic reform any comprehensive effort to address what ails American democracy should also seek to strengthen the relationship between citizens and their representatives. ![]() Much of the commentary on campaign fundraising-including publications from the Center for American Progress 3-focuses on the important goal of safeguarding representative government against corruption. 1 Moreover, Democratic leaders in Congress recently championed “A Better Deal for Our Democracy,” a package of pro-democracy legislation that includes support for robust small-donor-funded campaigns. In March, Washington, D.C., joined almost 30 other jurisdictions nationwide that provide public support to political campaigns financed by small donors. Americans are fed up with the influence of big money in politics-and the good news is that a growing number of citizens and lawmakers are doing something about it.
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