Financing Presidential Campaigns
By Phyllis Naegeli
1 The cost of financing a presidential campaign is tremendous. Millions of dollars must be spent on advertising, travel, mailings, and campaign staff. Funds for campaigns are received from two main sources – public (or government) funding and private contributions.
2 Private contributions come from a number of sources. Some candidates draw from their own financial resources. Individuals can contribute up to two thousand dollars to the campaigns of a candidate who shares their views. Special interest groups form Political Action Committees (PACs) to contribute to campaigns. Although PACs are limited to five thousand dollars per candidate per election, an interest group can form more than one PAC. This allows larger, wealthier groups to provide more money to a candidate who supports their cause.
3 Public funding comes from the government. Only presidential and vice-presidential candidates are eligible for this type of funding. A candidate receives up to two hundred and fifty dollars in matching funds for each contribution made. The government set this up to help limit the influence of wealthy donors on the leader of our country. However, the government does not match money received from PACs. There are strict guidelines that must be followed when a candidate accepts public money. In a campaign, all contributions over one-hundred dollars must be reported, cash contributions cannot exceed one-hundred dollars, foreign contributions are prohibited, and spending limits are set.
