It’s time Albany finally returns to government of, by, and for the people – not government bought and paid for by the special interests. As long as politicians are accountable to the corporations and lobbyists who finance their campaigns, they’re never going to be accountable to the people who elected them.

Ordinary New Yorkers should have their voices heard. We should replace corporate-funded elections with Fair Elections. We need to put elections back in the hands of ordinary New Yorkers. Politicians should work for us, not their special interest sponsors.

The campaign for Fair Elections for New York is focused on four key goals, enumerated by Governor Cuomo in his State of the State Address:

1. Public Financing of Elections – establishing a voluntary system to empower small donors by matching their contributions with public money, similar to NYC’s successful system.

2. Lower Contribution Limits – bringing New York State’s sky-high contribution limits down to reasonable levels

3. Ending Pay-to-Play – saving public dollars by preventing contributions and bundling by contractors and lobbyists from influencing decisions about state business.

4. Stronger Enforcement and Transparency – ensuring that our laws are enforced in a fair, effective and timely manner, and that public matching funds are appropriately disbursed.

Instead of candidates raising large contributions from wealthy donors, a voluntary system of public financing of elections allows candidates to run for office by collecting many small donations and receiving public funds to run their campaign. It puts elections back in the hands of voters, and is proven to increase small donor participation in campaigns.

The campaign is supported by a broad and diverse coalition of labor, faith, good government, and community-based organizations both in New York and nationally.

For more information on the campaign, and how you can get involved, go to:
http://www.fairelectionsny.org/

And check us out on Facebook at:
https://www.facebook.com/fairelectionsny