180 PART Two • ThE PoliTiCs oF AmERiCAn DEmoCRACy
spent directly to support candidates had to be
reported to the FEC, and the 501(c)4 could
continue to conceal its donors. One result
was to make it all but impossible to determine
exactly how much was spent by independent
groups on the 2008, 2010, and 2012 elections.
Critics claimed that 501(c)4s were being used
illegally. The FEC has never ruled on their valid-
ity, however.Presidential Candidate Committees.
Despite the limits on contributions to candi-
date committees, these organizations contin-
ued to collect large sums. The committees of
the major-party presidential nominees, Mitt
Romney and Barack Obama, were able to
amass more than $1 billion each, often from
relatively small contributions.
Candidate committees are much more
generously funded than in the past. From 1976
through 2004, most presidential candidates
relied on a system of public funding financed
by a checkoff on federal income tax forms. This
system provided funds to match what a can-
didate could raise during the primary season. During the general election campaign, the
system would pay for a candidate’s entire campaign. Publicly funded candidates, however,
could not raise funds independently for the general election or exceed the program’s over-
all spending limits.
The system began to break down after 2000, when many candidates rejected public
support throughout the primaries in the belief that they could raise larger sums privately.
In 2008, Barack Obama became the first candidate since the program was founded to
opt out of federal funding for the general elections as well. By 2012, the public financing
system was essentially out of business. None of the major candidates in either party was
willing to use it. Public funds continued to be available to support the parties’ national
conventions, but in 2012 Congress revoked funding for conventions in future election
years.Running FoR PREsiDEnT:
ThE longEsT CAmPAign
The American presidential election is the culmination of two different campaigns: the
presidential primary campaign and the general election campaign following the party’s
national convention. Traditionally, both the primary campaigns and the final campaigns
take place during the first ten months of an election year. Increasingly, though, the states
are holding their primaries earlier in the year, which has motivated the candidates to begin
their campaigns earlier as well. Indeed, candidates in the 2012 presidential races began
campaigning in early 2011, thus launching one of the longest presidential campaigns
to date.(Mort Gerberg/The New Yorker Collection/www.cartoonbank.com)LO3: Summarize the process of
choosing a president of the United
States.
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