John,

Defending our democracy means more than just calling out corruption and protecting the right to vote. It also means beating back the increasing power of dark money in our elections.

For years now, dark money groups have been empowering secretive donors who can spend vast sums to influence elections—all without voters’ knowledge. The use of dark money has been growing since the Supreme Court Citizens United decision opened the door to even more big money in our elections—but this year it shattered records with more than $1 billion in dark money spent.

Voters deserve to know who is spending to influence elections and should be able to take action when the FEC refuses to enforce campaign finance laws.

That’s why I wanted to tell you about two recent actions CREW just took to make that a reality:

CREW filed an amicus brief in support of Arizona’s Voter’s Right to Know Act which was passed in 2022 to combat corrupt elections and strengthen the state’s disclosure rules. We also filed an amicus brief urging the D.C. Circuit appeals court to restore Americans’ right to be able to seek relief in court for violations of campaign finance law when the Federal Election Commission is unable or unwilling to enforce the law.

Here’s the background on the first case:

Arizona’s Voter’s Right to Know Act is under attack. Two Koch-aligned groups are challenging the law in federal court so they can continue to spend large amounts of money and keep secretly buying elections, but we can’t let that happen.

That’s why in our amicus brief, we urge the court to dismiss the motion brought by these Koch-aligned groups.

If these groups succeed in getting the state to peel back the Voters’ Right to Know Act, it could cause irreparable and unconstitutional harm to Arizonans. The information this legislation requires to be disclosed is essential to Americans’ ability to monitor their elections and find out who is attempting to influence their vote.

John, without laws like the Voter’s Right to Know Act, billions of dollars in dark money could continue flowing into elections unchecked. These kinds of laws are essential for safeguarding democracy and we need to ensure that they stay in place.

Even with laws designed to make campaign finances more transparent, we need more effective avenues to hold politicians and dark money groups accountable.

So, in End Citizens United PAC v. FEC, CREW filed an amicus brief supporting the public’s right to hold candidates and political groups accountable when the FEC refuses to act.

In this case, End Citizens United alleged that Rick Scott, a Senate candidate, took and failed to disclose in a timely manner excessive funds from prohibited sources prior to declaring his run, amassing a war chest of unlawful funds to support his intended candidacy. But the FEC deadlocked along partisan lines on the complaint, with a majority eventually voting to dismiss the complaint in light of the deadlock.

John, this isn’t the only time the FEC has refused to act in the face of alleged violations.

The FEC has repeatedly failed to act on claims against Donald Trump and his political allies, leaving the people harmed by campaign malfeasance and illegal dark money without an avenue for recourse.

If the FEC won't do its job, the American people should be able to go to court to enforce campaign finance law. That’s why we’re demanding the D.C. Circuit restores Americans’ right to seek their own relief when the FEC refuses to act.

Without these protections, dark money will continue to erode our democracy and move power further away from voters.

Thanks,

Adam Rappaport
General Counsel
CREW