The American Democracy Minute Radio Report & Podcast for Aug. 22, 2023

Today’s Script

(Variations occur with audio due to editing for time. Today’s Links below the script)

You’re listening to the American Democracy Minute, keeping YOUR government by and for the people.

Former President Trump announced August 20th that he will not be participating in the upcoming GOP debates, saying the public already knew him. But just how important are the debates?

Most research focuses on the final debates between the party nominees. Analysis of academic research by politics data site FiveThirtyEight concludes that debates are most helpful early in the cycle, when there are several candidates and voters don’t know much about them. A study of the 1996 primary found that the appearance of “electability” and being “presidential” in a primary debate can shift voter opinion.

The Pew Research Center has found consistently that two-thirds of voters found the final Presidential debates “very” or “somewhat” helpful, yet analysis of viewership by the Annenberg Public Policy Center found the share of American households watching the debates is only 30-40%. There is some research that network post-debate analysis and news coverage in the days following also impacts voter opinions on candidates.

A 2003 article in Communication Monographs showed that the first debate in a series CAN have an “agenda-setting effect,” voters DO learn from debates, and debates, especially primary debates, DO have influence voter preferences. GOP debates are so far scheduled for Wednesday, August 23rd, and September 27th. Wednesday’s debate can be seen on Fox News and Fox Business channels, and streamed online.
We have links to articles and study summaries at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org. I’m Brian Beihl.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:
Associated Press – Trump says he will skip GOP presidential primary debates
FiveThirtyEight – (2020) What We Know About The Impact Of Primary Debates
The Journalist’s Resource / Harvard Kennedy School – Presidential debates and their effects: Research roundup
Pew Research Center – (2012) Most Say Presidential Debates Influence Their Vote
Annenberg Public Policy Center –  Presidential Debates: What’s Behind the Numbers?
Communication Monographs – (2003) A meta-analysis of the effects of viewing U.S. presidential debate
Pew Research Center – 5 facts about presidential and vice presidential debates
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel – How to watch the first Republican presidential debate on Aug. 23 in Milwaukee

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The post Trump Announces He’s Skipping the Initial GOP Primary Debates. How Much Do Presidential Candidate Debates Matter? appeared first on American Democracy Minute.

The American Democracy Minute Radio Report & Podcast for February 3, 2023

Today’s Links
Articles & Resources:
New York State Public Campaign Finance Board – Program Overview
New York State Public Campaign Finance Board – Candidate & Committee Services
City & State NY – What you need to know about New York’s new statewide public campaign finance program
Albany Times Union – New matching funds for state elections touted at New York City launch event
Minnesota Post – Why some want to make public spending on political campaigns in Minnesota less like Menards rebates

Groups Taking Action:
Brennan Center for Justice,  Public Citizen, Common Cause, List of organizations working on public financing at Reclaim the American Dream, Open Democracy, Clean Elections MN

Today’s Script:  (Variations occur with audio due to editing for time)

You’re listening to the American Democracy Minute, keeping YOUR government by and for the people.

Yesterday, we discussed Seattle’s Democracy Vouchers program, a concept under statewide consideration in Minnesota & New Hampshire. But there’s another style of citizen-funded elections just implemented in New York State after the midterms.

New York’s plan matches donations of $5 to $250 dollars for statewide or legislative offices. How much of a match depends on the office and the donation amount, and varies from a 6-1 match to 12-1. But to claim it, candidates must first prove they are viable by raising matchable donations from a certain number of voters. For State Assembly, that’s only 75 voters and $6,000. But for Governor, that’s 5,000 matchable contributions and $500,000. These amounts are calculated separately for the state primary and the general election.

Statewide offices have another requirement. Candidates for Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General or State Comptroller must participate in an hour-long debate, and to qualify, you must have raised and spent 5% of the state’s match of $175,000. If you don’t, you could lose your matching funds.

As for WHO can donate, New York’s plan prohibits corporations, unions, political committees, LLCs, partnerships & SuperPACs from making donations to candidates receiving matching funds.

The plan is optional for candidates, but candidates using small donation systems in other states have been successful in touting their independence from Big Money influence.
Find resources and groups taking action at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org. I’m Brian Beihl.

The post New York’s Matching System of Citizen-Funded Elections for State Offices appeared first on American Democracy Minute.