Individual Donors in Connecticut’s Public Financing Program: A Look at the First Election under the New System

Abstract

This paper takes a preliminary look at the effect of Connecticut’s new public financing system on individual donor - particularly small donor - participation in the state’s legislative election campaigns. We find that Connecticut’s first election under the new system saw an increase in citizens’ financial participation. The value of this gain is limited, however, by evidence that suggests that candidates usually relied on affluent individuals for the financial contributions needed to qualify for public campaign funds.