Unlimited corporate cash can now flow freely in Ohio political campaigns
because of a federal court agreement yesterday.
Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner said "it's turning into the Wild West out
there" because of legislative inaction to regulate corporate cash in politics.
The Ohio Elections Commission and secretary of state, who were defendants
in the lawsuit, were part of yesterday's agreement.
Brunner said the state law became unenforceable after the Supreme Court
decision. Shortly after the ruling, she proposed changes to assure
transparency and accountability, but they've been ignored.
Ohio's ban on corporate cash, enacted more than a century ago, was
designed "to prevent the corruption of elections and political parties by
corporations."
Philip Richter, executive director of the commission, said he's not sure that
dire predictions of corporate influence on elections will come true.
"I just don't see it being this massive infusion of cash from corporations," he
said.
Ned Foley, former state solicitor and current director of the election law
center at Ohio State University's law school, also was skeptical.
But Gonidakis said there's even more at stake; the Ohio statute contained a
clause that if any of the law was deemed unconstitutional, all of it would be
automatically repealed. That means provisions involving candidate
disclosure and other key issues could now be off the books.
He said the federal court is scheduled to take up that matter in a few days.
drowland@dispatch.com