Campaign finance reform

Hawaii Bans Corporate Election Spending in US First

Is this a landmark win for democracy or an unconstitutional attack on free speech?

Published MAY 26

Hawaii Bans Corporate Election Spending in US First

story

Above: The Hawaiian State Capitol building in Honolulu, on July 2, 2010. Image credit: Rolf Schulten/ullstein bild/Getty Images

The Spin

Democratic narrative

Hawaii's Act 011 is a landmark win for democracy — it redefines what powers the state grants corporations in the first place. Citizens United never addressed whether states must grant political spending power at all, so this law operates on entirely different legal ground. Every state serious about fair elections should follow Hawaii's lead and strip corporate money from politics at the source.

Katie Phang on Substack Americanprogress

Robert Reich on X

Republican narrative

Hawaii's Act 011 is a thinly veiled attempt to silence political speech by stripping corporations — which are associations of real citizens — of First Amendment rights the Supreme Court already affirmed. Hawaii's own attorney general warned the law is likely unconstitutional, and the penalties for any political spending, including automatic loss of corporate status, are extreme. This law will almost certainly be struck down in court.

Hawaii Free Press on X The National Law Review