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View Point

By Jean Y. Aoki

Saturday, April 22, 2000

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Hawaii must publicly
fund elections

The citizens of Hawaii have an opportunity to test an alternative method of funding election campaigns that would solve many of the problems with the current system. Unfortunately SB 2666, which would launch a pilot program to publicly fund the election campaigns for City Council candidates in 2002, is stalled in the Legislature, because of Sen. Cal Kawamoto.

Why should taxpayers foot the bill for election campaigns? Consider the following:

Control of the process. If voters are to really be in control of the election of our government officials, we need to be the ones who decide who will and will not run. We need to eliminate the "gatekeepers" who effectively determine who will be on the primary ballot. Note the early presidential primaries, in which special interests and party leaders screened the field of candidates and determined to whom the money would flow, consequently closing the gates to others.
More choice. When we remove the need to fundraise, we encourage more qualified people to run since the most onerous aspect of serving in elected office is the continuous need to raise funds. Also, those in a position to attract large donors and/or who have accumulated large campaign war chests needn't scare away challengers. This translates into more competition in each race.
Removal of the influence of special donors. No matter how much politicians deny it, large donations are not made without expectations of something in return, usually favorable legislation. The public funding of campaigns make elected officials accountable to all.
Containment of election costs. The U.S. Supreme Court has decreed that, while we may limit the amount donors may contribute to individual candidates, we may not limit the amount of expenditures by candidates. Thus, expenditures have been escalating dangerously, and the money chase has become all-consuming.
Process for the people. Just as elections are the people's business, campaigns that precede elections are also the people's business. Unless you're among the few who follow legislative proceedings closely, you are largely dependent on the information dispensed during an election campaign. The public is shortchanged when it depends on private donors to decide who can speak the longest and the loudest, since money is essential to disseminate the needed information.

Governments are established so that we, collectively, can work to provide for the needs that we, as individuals, cannot provide for ourselves. Our money, in the form of taxes and fees, are pooled to accomplish that.

Our representatives in government decide how that money will be used to provide for all of the needs of the community and set the policies that will determine the quality of life in our communities.

Thus, the election of these representatives should be the people's business -- from start to finish. It is our responsibility to ourselves and the future citizens of this state.

SB 2666 is a pilot program to test the feasibility and effectiveness of the public funding of election campaigns to eliminate or to minimize the more detrimental influences of special interest money on the electoral process and the establishing of public policies.

In the City Council elections, the candidates would run on a specified amount of public funding if they choose to do so, and would agree not to raise private funds. We owe it to ourselves to test such a program.

While public funding may not eliminate all of the problems of our electoral process, it is a huge step toward a saner and fairer electoral system.

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Jean Y. Aoki is legislative chairwoman of the
League of Women Voters of Hawaii.