Michigan elections should be decided by Michigan voters — not by foreign-influenced companies

Voters Not Politicians is building a movement to ban foreign-influenced companies from spending money in Michigan elections.

Foreign companies can’t make political contributions to influence Michigan’s elections. So why can companies with foreign ownership make political contributions?

THE PROBLEM

Foreign-influenced companies can and do give unlimited money to influence Michigan elections.

Here’s how:

Existing federal law prohibits foreign individuals, businesses, and governments from contributing to candidates in U.S. elections. But under Citizens United, foreign-owned U.S. subsidiaries or other U.S. companies with significant foreign ownership can spend unlimited money in elections as long as they don’t coordinate with candidates. This allows foreign-influenced companies to make political contributions, both directly and indirectly, to Super PACs and ballot measures.

How does this impact our elections?

Special interest groups in Washington D.C. raise money from foreign-influenced companies and spend it in Michigan elections to push their agendas through Super PACs. Michiganders shouldn't have to compete with deep-pocketed groups with no connection to our state when voting in elections that impact our families and communities.

Companies with foreign ownership like DTE Energy and Consumers Energy have spent millions of dollars on Michigan elections using this loophole to choose which lawmakers get elected. These lawmakers regulate them and approve their utility rate increases, while their customers have suffered higher utility costs, unreliable service, and lengthy power outages.

Michigan elections should be decided by Michigan voters - not foreign-influenced companies and elected officials should put the interests of Michiganders above the interests of foreign-influenced companies. Voters should have confidence that their voice is being heard and not drowned out by deep-pocketed foreign investors buying our elections to influence elected officials and advance their own interests.

The Solution

In 2018, Voters Not Politicians tackled one tactic special interest groups were using to influence Michigan’s elections by ending gerrymandering and creating a fair, impartial, and transparent redistricting process. Now, our people-powered organization is building a movement to ban foreign-influenced companies from spending money in Michigan elections.

Our Michigan-focused solution:

Voters Not Politicians supports a solution that would define a company as “foreign-influenced” if an individual or entity from outside the U.S. owns at least 1% of the company, or multiple individuals or entities from outside the U.S. own at least 5% of the company.

Our proposal would ban these foreign-influenced companies from making political contributions or spending money on elections in Michigan:

• Banned from making any expenditure on election-related communications in Michigan elections
• Banned from contributing to any organization that engages in any election-related spending
• Banned from contributing to a ballot measure

What Can You Do?

We need you to join our people-powered movement to ban foreign-influenced companies from making political contributions or spending money in Michigan elections.

Sign up using the volunteer sign-up form below to learn more about how you can become a volunteer legislative liaison, lead a team of volunteers in your community, get ready to circulate petitions, distribute supplies, and more!