Individual Support to Ban Foreign Influenced Corporations in California Elections
California Legislators
US Code clearly prohibits foreign money in US elections. Citizens United v FEC opened our elections to foreign money and influence through foreign investors who now hold over 42% of all shares in US corporations. The result has been precisely what our founders feared.
The Supreme Court Citizens’ United decision created a giant loophole allowing FOREIGN money into U.S. elections through foreign investments in U.S. Corporations. Did you know that foreigner investors own more than 40% of shares of U.S. corporations?
We
need to pass legislation the bans foreign influence in California
elections and close the loophole created by Citizens United.
Please sign on to the letter of intent below to show your
support to stop foreign influenced corporations from participating in
our elections.
Sponsored by
To:
California Legislators
From:
[Your Name]
I write to indicate my strong support for the reintroduction into the California legislature of the bill to prohibit foreign influenced U.S. corporations (FICs) from contributing to California elections.
This model legislation which is already law in San Jose, California and Seattle, Washington, and which was signed by Governor Tim Walz in Minnesota, would bar contributions from FICs to campaigns, candidates, PACs, Super-PACS, political parties and ballot measure.
52 U.S. Code § 30121 prohibits foreign money in U.S. elections contributed either “directly or indirectly”. However, the Supreme Court of the United States, in the 5-4 Citizens United (2010) ruling created a loophole for foreign money to “indirectly” stream into our elections through foreign investments in U.S. corporations.
While in 1982, 5% of all the shares held in U.S. corporations were held by foreign investors, by April 2024 the percentage of shares in U.S. corporations held by foreign investors was a staggering and worrying 42%.
As former Chair of the Federal Election Commission Ellen Weintraub, who first sounded the alarm that Citizens United had created a loophole for foreign money in our elections wrote: “It defies logic to allow groups of foreigners, or foreigners in combination with American citizens, to fund political spending through corporations."
Sincerely,