Overwhelming Majority of Candidates Opt In to Minnesota Public Financing System

Candidates Horner and Emmer are commended for supporting the program

Today, the Minnesota Campaign Finance Disclosure Board disbursed the public subsidy to candidates for state offices.  Despite the defunding of the Political Contribution Refund Program and the influx of special interest money since the Citizens United decision, almost 90% of candidates opted into Minnesota’s public financing system.

“The public subsidy is an important tool being used to combat the wave of special interest money flowing into Minnesota elections,” said Mike Dean, Executive Director of Common Cause Minnesota.  “Candidates Emmer and Horner should be commended for publically supporting this valuable program.”

The high participation rate in this program will help reduce the amount of special interest money going directly to candidates, thereby reducing the appearance of corruption. More importantly, the low spending limits create a level playing field for candidates, allowing them to spend more time talking to voters instead of raising money.

Unfortunately the public subsidy program is unable to combat the special interest money which is still able to flow into the political system through independent expenditures. This election should be a wakeup call for state leaders to address the influence that these groups have on our election system.

“These independent expenditures make politicians dependent on the corporate and special interests to get elected,” said Dean.  “As long as politicians are accountable to those special interests, they’re never going to be accountable to the people who elected them.”