In a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court struck down Arizona’s campaign finance law.
With that decision in mind, JLF Director of Legal and Regulatory Studies Daren Bakst says:
North Carolina’s system of taxpayer-financed elections features the same matching-funds provision, Bakst said. “These programs, often called ‘clean elections’ or ‘voter-owned elections,’ violate both the First Amendment rights of political candidates who do not want to take taxpayer dollars and the rights of organizations that are independently spending money to help candidates.”
“The implications are clear for North Carolina,” Bakst added. “The North Carolina legislature will need to repeal unconstitutional matching-fund provisions in existing law. This includes removing these provisions in the judicial taxpayer financing program, the Council of State taxpayer financing program, and a Chapel Hill municipal election taxpayer financing program.”
“Without the matching-fund provisions, the entire system falls apart,” Bakst added. “The General Assembly should get rid of the entire taxpayer-financed campaign scheme.”
Stay tuned.
