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Waging War on your own Democracy

Lindfors, Arvid LU and Englund, Victoria LU (2024) STVK04 20241
Department of Political Science
Abstract
This thesis studies the democratic implications of the "Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission" case in the decade following 2010. The aim is to examine the complexities of campaign finance regulations in regards to issues of elite influence, corruption and transparency. The subsequent proliferation of independent expenditure committees, or Super PACs, who can spend money on campaigning unlimitedly, has proven to be a contentious issue for the democratic process in the United States. We thoroughly evaluate three different dimensions - elite influence, corruption and transparency - in order to assess the democratic trends in the United States after the incorporation of Super PACs. This is done by applying the theoretical framework... (More)
This thesis studies the democratic implications of the "Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission" case in the decade following 2010. The aim is to examine the complexities of campaign finance regulations in regards to issues of elite influence, corruption and transparency. The subsequent proliferation of independent expenditure committees, or Super PACs, who can spend money on campaigning unlimitedly, has proven to be a contentious issue for the democratic process in the United States. We thoroughly evaluate three different dimensions - elite influence, corruption and transparency - in order to assess the democratic trends in the United States after the incorporation of Super PACs. This is done by applying the theoretical framework of elite theory and institutional corruption theory on multiple studies and account records since 2010. The approach leads to insights from multiple perspectives as well as contextualizes the information, resulting in an examination through a new lens. Our findings indicate that the existing campaign finance laws are inadequate, revealing loopholes that undermine the foundational principles of democracy. Our assessment suggests that these laws inadequately safeguard democracy, necessitating multiple reforms, such as more rigorous disclosure requirements, to uphold democratic integrity in the United States. (Less)
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author
Lindfors, Arvid LU and Englund, Victoria LU
supervisor
organization
alternative title
An examination of the decade following ‘Citizens United’
course
STVK04 20241
year
type
M2 - Bachelor Degree
subject
keywords
Super PACs, democracy, transparency, corruption, elites
language
English
id
9152391
date added to LUP
2024-07-18 11:10:32
date last changed
2024-07-18 11:10:32
@misc{9152391,
  abstract     = {{This thesis studies the democratic implications of the "Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission" case in the decade following 2010. The aim is to examine the complexities of campaign finance regulations in regards to issues of elite influence, corruption and transparency. The subsequent proliferation of independent expenditure committees, or Super PACs, who can spend money on campaigning unlimitedly, has proven to be a contentious issue for the democratic process in the United States. We thoroughly evaluate three different dimensions - elite influence, corruption and transparency - in order to assess the democratic trends in the United States after the incorporation of Super PACs. This is done by applying the theoretical framework of elite theory and institutional corruption theory on multiple studies and account records since 2010. The approach leads to insights from multiple perspectives as well as contextualizes the information, resulting in an examination through a new lens. Our findings indicate that the existing campaign finance laws are inadequate, revealing loopholes that undermine the foundational principles of democracy. Our assessment suggests that these laws inadequately safeguard democracy, necessitating multiple reforms, such as more rigorous disclosure requirements, to uphold democratic integrity in the United States.}},
  author       = {{Lindfors, Arvid and Englund, Victoria}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Waging War on your own Democracy}},
  year         = {{2024}},
}