Campaign Fundraising
An area of Alabama politics that could definitely benefit from some scrutiny is in the area of Campaign Fundraising. There should be reasonable maximum limits for any candidate to raise in order to secure the position. The playing field needs to be leveled.
My opponent, per the latest filing of his publicly available Campaign Finance Report ending 6/30/22, shows a balance of $944,106. Why would a job that only pays $51,734 per year have a war chest of almost $1M (in an uncontested election)?
Committee Financial Summary (alabamavotes.gov)
Per the website www.followthemoney.org, the incumbent has received almost $2M in contributions over the past 5 elections, almost every time unopposed. The list of contributors, (also publicly available), demonstrates a huge influence by PACs and special interest groups, mostly located outside of District 3. The latest donation to my opponent is a prime example, from the "Tiger Paw" PAC located in Montgomery which represents several large businesses. It just kicked in another $2,500 to his campaign out of the kindness of their hearts (for a total of $10,000 contributed). The month before that it was $10,000 from the Alabama Hospital Association PAC, also located in Montgomery. And why do entities such as Alabama Power and the University of South Alabama have any business in contributing to a politician who has fiduciary oversight to their operating revenues?
This is one of the big reasons I decided to throw my hat into the ring. No politician needs this chunk of money when he was unopposed in the Republican primary, and no Democrat has come forward to challenge him in the General Election. No politician needs to be influenced in making decisions based on their donor base. This phenomenon makes it extremely difficult for a challenger, and virtually eliminates any opportunity for a competitive two (or three) party race. Democracy is threatened in an environment where politicians are beholding to powerful groups, and this needs to change!
As stated on my home page, I intend to run a highly efficient, social media heavy campaign. I plan to remain completely free of any hint of favoritism to any special interest group. I specifically intend to capitalize on social media via this site, Facebook, Twitter, and other politically based information sites. You might also see or hear from me on one or more of the local news/radio stations, but that will be determined in the future.
Thanks for your consideration!
