Role of the Supreme Court in Election Operations

Role of the Supreme Court in Election Operations

Voting is an important rite of passage for Americans. Without the participation of the people, the government would fail. This is why it is important to make the voting process as easy and fair as possible. Ballot counting and campaign funding are two areas of election operations in which the courts have ruled on process and fairness issues. For instance, when an election dispute occurs regarding ballot counting, the courts are responsible for ensuring the due process rights of voters, that is, ensuring that all votes are counted. Also, since in many ways money is what gets a candidate elected—via impressive advertisement and the ability to visit several states and communities—the courts also have intervened to determine the fairest course of action in regulating campaign contributions and electoral practices by the states.

The McCain-Feingold Campaign Reform Bill in 2002 prohibits all soft money from a political campaign. Soft money is a contribution to a national political party as a whole that somehow finds its way to funding that party’s candidate for president. It can be from corporations, labor unions, or wealthy individuals. Hard money is a contribution directly to the candidate’s campaign that is regulated through the Federal Elections Commission and that includes the name of the contributor and the amount donated. Since soft money contributions are not intended for a specific candidate, the money is not regulated and persists as an unchecked source of money.

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