Democracy 21
Encyclopedia
Democracy 21 is a non-profit organization
in the United States
that works to remove the influence of private money
from politics
(see campaign finance
, campaign finance reform
). It was founded in 1997 by longtime activist Fred Wertheimer
, and is based in Washington, DC. The group has three stated goals:
Non-profit organization
Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
that works to remove the influence of private money
Money
Money is any object or record that is generally accepted as payment for goods and services and repayment of debts in a given country or socio-economic context. The main functions of money are distinguished as: a medium of exchange; a unit of account; a store of value; and, occasionally in the past,...
from politics
Politics of the United States
The United States is a federal constitutional republic, in which the President of the United States , Congress, and judiciary share powers reserved to the national government, and the federal government shares sovereignty with the state governments.The executive branch is headed by the President...
(see campaign finance
Campaign finance
Campaign finance refers to all funds that are raised and spent in order to promote candidates, parties or policies in some sort of electoral contest. In modern democracies such funds are not necessarily devoted to election campaigns. Issue campaigns in referendums, party activities and party...
, campaign finance reform
Campaign finance reform
Campaign finance reform is the common term for the political effort in the United States to change the involvement of money in politics, primarily in political campaigns....
). It was founded in 1997 by longtime activist Fred Wertheimer
Fred Wertheimer
Fredric Michael "Fred" Wertheimer is an American activist notable for his work on campaign finance reform. He served as president of Common Cause and is currently the President and CEO of Democracy 21 and Democracy 21 Education Fund, which he founded in 1997.He has received honorary Doctorates...
, and is based in Washington, DC. The group has three stated goals:
- Promoting campaign finance reforms, such as the ban on soft money enacted in 2002 (see McCain-FeingoldBipartisan Campaign Reform ActThe Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 is a United States federal law that amended the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, which regulates the financing of political campaigns. Its chief sponsors were Senators Russell Feingold and John McCain...
) reforming the Federal Election CommissionFederal Election CommissionThe Federal Election Commission is an independent regulatory agency that was founded in 1975 by the United States Congress to regulate the campaign finance legislation in the United States. It was created in a provision of the 1975 amendment to the Federal Election Campaign Act...
and fixing the presidential public financing system; - Ensuring that the new campaign finance law and the nation’s other campaign finance laws are effectively implemented and enforced; and
- Defending campaign finance laws in the courtCourtA court is a form of tribunal, often a governmental institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between parties and carry out the administration of justice in civil, criminal, and administrative matters in accordance with the rule of law...
s.