Oakland Is Poised to Join Growing Movement in Eliminating Corporate Money From Elections
Dec. 20, 2011
Oakland Is Poised to Join Growing Movement in Eliminating Corporate Money From Elections
Statement of Mark Hays, Campaign Coordinator, Public Citizen’s Democracy Is For People Campaign
Today, Oakland is poised to become the latest in a string of cities across the country working to upend the U.S. Supreme Court’s disastrous decision in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission.
The Oakland City Council is voting tonight on a resolution asking Congress to pass an amendment overturning the Citizens United decision, which allowed corporations to spend unlimited sums from their treasuries to influence elections.
If passed, Oakland would join a growing number of communities – including Los Angeles, Calif.; Albany, N.Y.; Missoula, Mont.; Boulder, Colo. and South Miami, Fla. – that have voted to rid elections of corporate cash.
Additionally, activists in Oakland and across the nation will be taking action in the coming weeks to highlight the need for the federal government to enact meaningful campaign finance reform and build momentum for a nationwide day of action on January 21 – the second anniversary of the Citizens United decision.
More and more people across the country are standing up to reclaim our democracy – and are expecting elected officials to heed the call for constitutional reform that makes clear that democracy is for people, not for corporations.
Learn more about Public Citizen’s Democracy Is For People Campaign.
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Public Citizen is a national, nonprofit consumer advocacy organization based in Washington, D.C. For more information, please visit www.citizen.org.