Citizens Forgotten: Super PACs, Dark Money, and the Corporate Takeover of American Democracy

Since the 2010 Citizens United and SpeechNOW rulings, campaign finance laws have undergone a seismic shift. These changes include the establishment of super PACs, which have allowed unlimited contributions and spending from megadonors to be funneled into political activism. These dramatic changes in campaign finance have allowed a small number of ultra-wealthy contributors to reshape American democracy and all three branches of government. Using data from the 2024 election cycle, this book explores the impact of the super PAC, which has allowed megadonors unprecedented capacity to shape political outcomes through targeted campaigning. These super PACs outspend all other political entities combined in America’s most competitive congressional races while prioritizing national agendas and extensively using negative campaign advertisements. At the executive level, contributions to super PACs have become a convenient way for the ultra-wealthy to gain backdoor influence into executive actions and policy choices. Finally, the judicial branch, which opened the door to these changes, has experienced a crisis of legitimacy resulting from ties to dark money from litigants with cases before the courts. Combining historical, legal and empirical analysis, this book provides a clear, accessible overview of how campaign finance deregulation has amplified the voices of the wealthy at the expense of democratic representation.