What kind of impact does Clean Elections have on the participants in our democracy? A big one -- even greater than what we previously knew, thanks to Public Campaign's new study out this week, "All Over the Map: Small Donors Bring Diversity to Arizona's Elections." They looked at the donors in statewide races covered by the state-level Clean Elections program in Arizona and compared them to the donors in federal races for Senate, which have the same statewide electorate but currently have no public funding or Clean Elections option.

The difference is striking: from race and ethnicity to economic and geographic levels, the Clean Elections donors represent a much wider and more representative mix of citizens. Again, the executive summary is here.

The Arizona Republic has a good story on the widening scope of public corruption investigations at the local, state and national levels.

There's more inside.

Gather 'round for your weekly one-stop-shop for state news and happenings.  

• Voters in Arizona this November will be entered in a lottery to win $1 million dollars.
  
• Matt Brix, the Executive Director of Common Cause New Mexico, appeared on the Al Franken Show to talk about public financing.
  
• The debate over voter IDs in Georgia continues.
  
• Also, a voter ID law in Missouri is being challenged.
  
• There are about a gajillion redistricting proposals being offered in Texas right now, each with their own agenda.  How many of them are aimed at protecting the voting rights of minorities?  Just a handful.
  
• Ralph Reed lost his primary for Georgia Lt. Governor after his ties with Jack Abramoff became front-page fodder.
  
• The ACLU is challenging Connecticut's public financing law in court.
  
• Common Cause Pennsylvania has asked for an official inquiry into suspicious campaign spending by State Speaker of the House John Perzel.
  
• The latest campaign finance data from New York has been released.
  
• Ethics reform in North Carolina is looking good.  The State Senate passed overhauling legislation this week; there are differences with the State House, but this is one state that is making great progress towards real reform.

Residents of Arizona may have a few more reasons to go to the polls this November... about a million to be exact.  Mark Osterloh, the NYT-dubbed "political gadfly" behind the Arizona Voter Reward Act, has collected 185,902 signatures for a ballot initiative that qualifies anyone and everyone who votes in a general Arizona election for a chance to win $1 Million.  

The signatures (far more than the requisite 122,612) and the subsequent approval from the AZ Secretary of State mean that the initiative will be voted on this November, and since approximately 2 million people voted in Arizona's last general election, the chances of winning the million dollar prize are about one in two-million--considerably better odds than winning Powerball (odds: 1 in 146,107,962).  

However, Osterloh's initiative has already received some strong criticism from some who see the million-dollar-vote idea as "crass commercialization" and others who find it simply illegal.  Critics of the initiative argue that the higher number of voters guaranteed by this initiative do not necessarily mean a better outcome for the state and the country.  Others cite Arizona law which threatens prison time for up to one year for anyone who, "makes or offers to make an expenditure to any person, either to vote or withhold his vote, or to vote for or against any candidate; and whoever solicits, accepts, or receives any such expenditure in consideration of his vote or the withholding of his vote".

So far, Arizona political leaders have refused to take a stance on the issue.  

Source: NY Times http://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/17/us/17voter.html

UPI
http://www.upi.com/NewsTrack/view.php?StoryID=20060717-020203-3196r

The assault on Arizona Clean Elections is back.  A bill (HCR 2046) to place a repeal in front of voters failed to move out of committee earlier this session, and after the deadline for action on it passed, we thought we were safe.

Oh, how we underestimated the proponents of big money politics.  Although the deadline has passed to move their first bill, they're back with a "striker" amendment.  This is a neat little legislative trick that guts an entire bill - in this case, one that deals the retirement age of judges (SCR 1013) - and instead turns it into a repeal referendum on Clean Elections.

If you live in Arizona, please take action now: Email your state senator and representatives and ask them to oppose this striker.

But wait, there's more.