A proposal on the Ann Arbor November ballot asks voters to establish a fund to help local candidates fund their elections. But its legality is still unclear.
Proposal D would establish what’s being called a “Fair Elections Fund” using 0.3 of 1% of Ann Arbor’s General Fund for the public financing of candidates for Mayor and City Council.
John Godfrey with the Coalition for Ann Arbor’s Future says the fund will help take the influence of money out of local elections. He says successful candidates are raising big bucks to run for office.
“So clearly, what we are seeing is an influx of money into our local elections, and money is choosing our candidates rather than voters.”
But Proposal D has many detractors, including the Ann Arbor League of Women Voters, the NAACP and most elected officials, including Mayor Christopher Taylor.
“We don’t have $425,000 to pay out to political candidates. Further, the proposal is extremely ill-designed.”
The State Attorney General’s office says proposal would violate state law.
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