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Americans expect and deserve a strong democracy, but we can never take the health of our democratic system for granted. The For the People Act (H.R. 1) brings to bear transformative reforms that will help safeguard our democracy which has been increasingly under attack by enemies both foreign and domestic. It has become clear that we must shore up the defenses of our democracy by expanding access to the franchise, empowering the voices of everyday Americans in our elections, and upholding strong ethical standards in government. H.R. 1 contains reforms that address all three pillars. Many of the solutions in H.R. 1 have worked successfully at the state and local level for years.

RALEIGH – U.S. Postmaster Louis DeJoy should be investigated immediately for an alleged campaign donation scheme that may have violated North Carolina law, according to a complaint filed today by Common Cause NC with the State Board of Elections and also sent to Attorney General Josh Stein requesting a criminal investigation.

Today, Common Cause filed comments urging the Federal Election Commission (FEC) to conduct a rulemaking proceeding in order to adopt a regulation to prohibit billionaires like Michael Bloomberg from evading federal law limits on contributions to party committees by routing funds through their own campaign committees. Bloomberg’s $18 million contribution to the Democratic National Committee—and hundreds of thousands of dollars in-kind contributions to state Democratic party committees—from his self-financed presidential campaign committee took advantage of a longstanding allowance for candidates to transfer unlimited leftover campaign funds to party committees. Previously those funds were raised under existing contribution limits, but Bloomberg self-financed his campaign to the tune or more than $1 billion.

I am very sorry to announce that Ann McBride, who served in many capacities at Common Cause, including President, passed away on May 5. She was 75 and had been in declining health. Ann is an important part of Common Cause’s history and was a cherished mentor and role-model to me. Ann’s message was clear. Our victories were, she would often say, a message of hope for citizens – a reminder that working together, we all could make a difference in our government and our world.

Democracy reform, driven by the people, is on the march in states and municipalities across the nation where scores of pro-democracy reforms have been enacted. But democracy reform remains stalled in the U.S. Senate where the Republican majority ignores the will of the people. Sunday will mark one year since the U.S. House of Representatives passed its sweeping and transformative package of pro-democracy reforms in the For the People Act, or H.R. 1.

Today, Common Cause filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) alleging reason to believe that Our Revolution, a nonprofit political organization established by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) in 2016 and now supporting his 2020 presidential campaign, violated the federal ‘soft money’ ban. Sen. Sanders has been a longtime critic of super PACs and so-called “Dark Money” groups. The complaint documents that Our Revolution has solicited contributions explicitly to elect Sanders president, received contributions far in excess of the applicable $5,000 contribution limit and spent funds in connection with federal elections, including current voter mobilization efforts supporting Sanders in Iowa.