Dear Senator Ben Cardin,
We are calling on you to join the ranks of Kirsten Gillibrand, Cory Booker, Elizabeth Warren, Kamala Harris, and Bernie Sanders to forgo all Corporate PAC and Super PAC campaign donations from May 2018 onward.
In Maryland, foregoing corporate donations is quickly becoming a more and more well-known idea. These upcoming 2018 elections will be the ones that showcase upwards of 20 candidates in Montgomery County who have enrolled in the county’s small donor pool during its first year in operation.
In 2016, citizens of Howard County voted directly by referendum to enact a similar small donor pool in that county. The goal of the small donor pools in Montgomery and Howard counties is the same goal as all public financing: to prioritize interactions with local individuals.
Prioritizing individual donors is the new standard at the state and federal levels of Maryland as well. Governor Hogan utilized public financing for his race in 2014, and Rich Magdaleno will be utilizing it in 2018. Congressman Sarbanes (District 3) has pledged to forgo corporate PAC donations, and has been running his campaign completely on individual donations for the past couple of years.
Senator Cardin, as an incumbent politician, you already have both name recognition and issue recognition. You will not need a stash of secret funds to make your constituents aware of who you are. So, let this be one of your issues.
A similar call was made to Marco Rubio by Parkland survivor Cameron Kasky, who asked him to stop taking PAC money from the NRA. He did not agree to it. We are asking you to do better.
Pledge to take no corporate PAC or Super PAC money starting in May of 2018. Pledge to represent only us.
Sincerely,
The Voters of Maryland
If you are a Maryland Voter and would like to sign this petition click here.
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