Public Regulation Commission Chairman Jason Marks is the first candidate to qualify for public financing this year.
Marks, a Democrat from
“Public financing of elections is the best way yet devised to remove the undue influence money on has our democratic system,” Marks said in the release. “Right now, qualifying for public financing means that our PRC re-election campaign can continue to focus on the concerns of voters and not the dash for cash.”
We’ll see how the system works this year. Two PRC candidates from
Both ended up losing their primary races.
Since then, the state has expanded the public financing system to include statewide judicial positions. Will the public financing system work better this year? Time will tell.
Update, 2:10 p.m.
It has been pointed out to me that when the Legislature expanded the public-financing system to include judicial races in 2007, it also made some changes designed to fix the logistical problems Evans and Baca encountered in 2006. So there’s reason to believe the system will work better this year.
Update, 2:45 p.m.
Democrat Stephanie DuBois e-mailed me to remind me she ran for a PRC seat with public financing in 2006 and did win her primary.
“There are many glitches in the system, but for the most part I think public money is the way to go,” she said, adding that after each election there should be a review to determine what can be improved in the system.