Campaign Finance Law (BCRA) Continues to Push Parties, Candidates to Raise Money From Individuals in 2006

February 2, 2007 | 11:15 am

WASHINGTON, Feb. 2 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Candidates and congressional committees had a banner cycle in money raised and spent in 2005-2006, according to a major new report by the Center for the Study of Elections and Democracy at Brigham Young University. The report will be released at a press conference and series of panel discussions on Monday, February 5, 2005, from 10:00 am to 1:00 pm at the Pew Charitable Trusts, 1025 "F" Street, NW, 9th floor. The event is open to media and coverage is invited.

At the event, CSED will release its new monograph "War Games: Issues and resources in the battle for the control of Congress," the complete summary of the CSED 2006 research project. CSED also will review many of the television ads and direct mail pieces that proliferated in the 2006 election. David Magleby and Kelly Patterson, editors of the report, will be joined by experts, practitioners, and academics, who will discuss the findings of the report and efforts and trends by parties, candidates, and interest groups in 2006 (and with an eye toward 2008).

Their research shows that parties targeted a hard money bonanza into ground war activities and independent expenditures. All six party committees set new records for hard money receipts in a midterm election cycle, and the congressional campaign committees all raised and spent more hard money than in any previous cycle. Their research also shows that interest groups and parties continue to display an impressive amount of election communications activity in targeted congressional elections. In the 2006 elections, political parties rivaled, and in some cases surpassed candidates for the amount of unique campaign pieces disseminated. In the contests monitored by Magleby and Patterson's reconnaissance network, interest groups produced an aggregate of 642 unique campaign ads (mail, billboards, newspaper ads, etc.) with Democratic-leaning groups outperforming Republican allies two to one. The expanding terrain of the 2006 election battle will also be discussed, as will the implications for 2008.

Panelists will include Karin Johansen, Executive Director of the DCCC; Mike McElwain, former Political Director of the NRCC; Guy Cecil, Political Director of the DSCC; Rich Beeson, Political Director of the RNC; Mike Podhorzer, Political Department Deputy Directory of the AFL-CIO; Bill Miller, Vice President of Public Affairs and National Political Director of The U.S. Chamber of Commerce; Linda Lipson, Legislative Liaison of ATLA; and David Keating, Executive Director for Club for Growth. A second panel will be held with many of the nation's leading academic researchers who analyzed Senate and House elections across the country.

    WHAT:  Panels of leading academics '06 players and release of new report:
           War Games: Issues and resources in the battle for the control of
           Congress

    WHO:   Center for the Study of Elections and Democracy at Brigham Young
           University

    WHEN:  Monday, February 5, 2007
           10:00 am -- 1:00 pm (boxed lunch included, with RSVP)

    WHERE: Pew Charitable Trusts, 1025 F Street NW, 9th Floor