interest groups & party funding

interest groups - political involvement

• US - political parties are weaker and more decentralised, so citizens often turn to pressure groups for political engagement

• UK - political parties are stronger and more centralised, but pressure groups still advocate for interests not covered by parties such as the British Medical Association (BMA)

interest groups - grassroots activity

• Both the US and UK have outsider pressure groups that seek to influence public opinion

• EX: 2011 - both countries had ‘Occupy’ movements - ‘Occupy London’ and ‘Occupy Wall Street’ - which used similar protest methods to gain attention and support

interest groups - executive branch

Both US and UK pressure groups can have influence on the executive - ministers in the UK and cabinet members in the US may consult pressure groups during policy formation

interest groups - courts

• US - pressure groups can bring cases to the SC and challenge laws they view unconstitutional

  • EX: Citizens v FEC was brought by Citizens United, a Conservative political campaigning organisation

• UK - pressure groups cannot strike down legislation because parliamentary sovereignty means Acts of Parliament cannot be invalidated by the courts

  • However, groups can still influence outcomes through judicial review and HRA challenges

interest groups - party discipline

• US - party discipline in the US is weaker than in the UK, so individual representatives have more control over how they vote

  • Primary system means voters can choose who they wish to nominate for the party, rather than the party choosing - means representatives don’t have to worry about losing support by not voting on party lines

• UK - party discipline is stronger, so MPs are more likely to follow leadership and party directions

  • Thus pressure groups are less likely to influence individual MPs

campaign finance - us

• US candidates fund campaigns using donations

• The 2002 McCain-Feingold Act stopped party committess raising ‘soft money’ and required candidates to endorse all campaign advertising

• 2010 Citizens United v FEC ruling gave corporations and unions the right to unlimited independent political expenditures in any election

• Super PACs spend unlimited money supporting or opposing a candidate without directly funding their campaign

• US campaigns are often reliant on money from wealthy individuals and companies

  • EX: 2018 Tom Steyer and his company Fahr LLC donated $41 million to the Democrats

campaign finance - uk

• Parties receive funding through membership fees and donations from individuals and organisations

• Short money is state funding for the main opposition party, covering administrative costs and enabling scrutiny of the government

• The PPERA (2000) limited party spending at GEs; the Political Parties and Elections Act (2009) enabled the Electoral Commission to fine parties who broke rules

• Controversies remain over large donations from wealthy donors and businesses

  • EX: 2026 Reform received £72 million in donations from 2 crypto-magnets: Christopher Harborne and Ben Delo