The New Frontline in the Battle for Campaign Finance Reform

With the FEC asleep at the wheel, the best hope for campaign finance reform might be local governments.

High levels of independent expenditures, the prominence of big donors, and a lack of transparency about funding sources have become part and parcel of the electoral process — thanks to legislative changes and agency gridlock.

By closely following the flow of cash into political coffers, a new report from the Campaign Finance Institute (CFI) sheds light on what has caused the ever-increasing polarization of political campaigns.

But not all is grim on the reform front. Where federal bodies have failed to regulate and enforce laws intended to abate political corruption, cities and states are moving ahead with local measures that hold out the promise of more transparent and representative elections.