After the midterm election season flooded with millions of dollars, two state legislators are looking to publicly fund state elections.
State Sen. Fred Risser, D- Madison, and state Rep. Mark Pocan, D- Madison, announced their intent to introduce new campaign finance reform legislation aiming to fund entire campaigns with state money. This idea is designed after similar laws in Maine and Arizona.
""The record amounts of money spent in the recent legislative races are yet another reminder that the votes of many elected officials are for sale to the highest bidder,"" Pocan said in a statement. ""Our bill is a bold comprehensive electoral reform measure that has proven to work in other states, and will have a major impact in restoring Wisconsin's reputation.""
This announcement follows a record-breaking amount of campaign spending in the gubernatorial race. According to the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, a nonpartisan political watchdog group, Gov. Jim Doyle spent $8,013,811, and his republican challenger U.S. Rep. Mark Green used up $6,241,246.
Under Risser and Pocan's bill, the public would fund the campaign races with a Clean Elections Fund. To qualify for the public money, a candidate would have to gather a certain amount of $5 donations from residents in their districts and then be approved. Different positions would have spending limits.
Risser and Pocan said they hope this bill will ""level the playing field"" in politics.
Additionally, state Sen. Michael G. Ellis, R-Neenah, and Jon Erpenbach, D-Middleton, announced last month they would introduce legislation forcing political groups that pay for advertising within 30 days of an election to register with the state Elections Board and disclose their sources of funding.
