What, if anything, needs to change about how candidates and elections are funded?
U.S. Senator
Kelly Tshibaka
Republican candidate for U.S. Senator
At the State Fair this summer, the greatest concern Alaskans shared with me was the disturbing news, revealed in undercover videos, that Sen. Murkowski’s political team used dark money to promote Ballot Measure 2, deceiving Alaskans that they would “get dark money out of Alaska” when it actually brought in ranked choice voting for the purpose of keeping Murkowski in office. In fact, Murkowski’s campaign is mostly funded by dark money.
(Editor’s note: Murkowski disputes these claims.)
In light of how our election process has been re-engineered, I would support legislation to improve transparency, reduce the threat of corruption and make the flow of campaign money more transparent to the public. I also support eliminating the arbitrary contribution limits that encourage donors to circumvent campaign finance laws. Such legislation not only would respect donors’ First Amendment rights, but also would reinforce the sovereignty of the people over elected officials and decrease the threat that donations are given in exchange for votes in Congress.
Lisa Murkowski
Republican candidate for U.S. Senator
As Justice Scalia wrote in the Citizens United case, “Requiring people to stand up in public for their political acts fosters civic courage, without which democracy is doomed.” Transparency is key. We must always be doing more to inform the public as to who is contributing to political campaigns. In 2012, I introduced a bipartisan blueprint for campaign finance reform. Alaska took a strong step forward in doing this on the state level in 2020, and I have long supported and introduced legislation to strengthen campaign finance disclosure.
Patricia Chesbro
Democratic candidate for U.S. Senator
Though I do not think money is the only aspect of an election, I think having the resources to inform voters of a candidate’s stand on issues is important. My team and I are running what I call a fiscally conservative campaign. All of our money has come from individuals, mostly in Alaska, but not entirely. I am proud of the many people who have helped. I think elections will remain lopsided until we get a handle on the unreasonable amounts of money spent to persuade voters. The wealthy should not control our legislatures. I do not believe corporations are people and I regret that corporate influence remains so strong in our system. I worry that the enormous funds expended might be better used to feed children, or house the unhoused, or ensure medical care for all.