American democracy is in trouble. With barely six weeks to go before polling day on November 3, President Donald Trump has been priming his supporters with warnings the vote will be stolen.
Its not just Republicans who believe the election could be rigged. Polls suggest Democrats in potential swing states such as Georgia could refuse to accept the result if Joe Biden loses.
Americas democratic crisis has many causes. Decades of voter suppression and gerrymandering have left millions disenfranchised. A deeply partisan media has been become even more polarised as disinformation a fancy word for lies spreads like digital wildfire on social media. More US voters get their news from self-styled experts on Facebook and Twitter than from CNN and the New York Times.
But mistrust of democracy is not just a problem on the other side of the Atlantic. Earlier this year a study by Cambridge Universitys Centre For The Future of Democracy found record levels of discontent with democracy around the world. Discontent was particularly high in Britain, where 61% of people surveyed said they were dissatisfied with democracy.
What can explain this rising dissatisfaction? If we look at the United States and the UK, its not hard to see a few possible reasons. Both have first-past-the-post systems that tend to encourage polarisation around two parties. Media is often concentrated in a tiny number of hands. Inequality has risen sharply in recent decades. There is another factor, too: money. In both Britain and America, politics runs on private funding and, just as in the US, the amount of money in British politics has grown sharply. In the run-up to the 2019 General Election, the Conservatives raised a record 40 million from private donors.
At the same time as declared donations have risen, so too has the influence of anonymous funding. This dark money gets into the political system through everything from loopholes in election law and online campaign fundraising to anonymously-funded, agenda-setting pressure groups.
A classic example of dark money in British politics is the Democratic Unionist Partys extravagant spending during the Brexit referendum. The DUP bought newspaper adverts in England, Facebook campaigns and more worth 425,000. The source of this money was never made public due to donor secrecy laws in place in Northern Ireland, but it was funnelled through an obscure group called the Constitutional Research Group run by former Scottish Conservatives vice-chairman Richard Cook.
The US has long been prey to the corrosive influence of dark money. Since the 1970s, US democracy was effectively bought by a cadre of the super-rich and their surrogates. The sums involved are enormous. The Koch brothers, David and Charles, co-owners of the second-largest private company in the US with interests in coal and petroleum, spent more than $1.5 billion on Republican political causes until Davids death in 2019.
As the amount of conservative money in American politics grew, progressives started giving more money to political causes. Joe Biden raised more than $300m in August alone.
In British politics, too, money talks but you dont need anywhere near as much cash to get politicians to listen. A little bit of money goes a long way, former Conservative minister Guto Bebb told me in an interview for my latest book. We are not America. You dont have to spend half a billion on an election campaign. If you are willing to put a quarter of a million into a think tank, you can get a lot of bang for your buck.
The numbers are stark. The 2018 US midterm elections were estimated to have cost almost $6bn. In Britain, almost anyone with 50,000 burning a hole in their back pocket can join the Conservative Leaders Group. In return, Leaders Group donors receive regular off-the-record dinners, lunches and drinks receptions with the prime minister and cabinet ministers. The donors are treated like an intelligent fan club. If there is a businessman who wants to have a chat with a future prime minister, this is his opportunity, said one regular.
The public doesnt even know who is in the Leaders Group. David Cameron agreed to release details after it emerged the then prime minister was hosting private parties for funders at the Downing Street flat. But the Tories stopped publishing this information a few years ago, and all previous releases have been scrubbed from the partys website.
So, what do donors get for their money? For some, its status. Spending 90,000 on a game of tennis with Boris Johnson as Lubov Chernukhin, wife of a former Russian finance minister, did earlier this year has social cache.
Some donors seek influence and access. Over the past decade, almost one-fifth of leading Conservative donors have received honours, including knighthoods and peerages, after donating to the party. The number of government contracts given to businesses with long-standing ties to the Conservatives during the Covid-19 pandemic has been well-documented.
Other parties rely on donations too, of course. Chris and Colin Weir gave millions to the Scottish National Party after their EuroMillions win in 2011. Labour is largely dependent on trade unions. The super-rich donors who supported Tony Blair are long gone, although some private money has returned since Keir Starmer replaced Jeremy Corbyn as leader earlier this year.
The money behind the Conservatives has been changing, too. After the Brexit vote in June 2016, the Tories already narrow funding pool contracted sharply. The pro-European business elite fled the party. About two-thirds of existing donors reduced their contributions, or stopped giving. Dislocated from their traditional support, the Conservatives are now largely dependent on funding from a small number of overwhelmingly pro-Brexit donors. When Boris Johnson became prime minister in June 2019, promising a hard Brexit, donations increased sharply, particularly from corporates and wealthy individuals involved in hedge funds and other speculative finance.
We dont need to look far to see what happens when a small group of donors have an over-sized political influence. A federal election in the US is supposed to be decided by 150 million voters, and yet the policy preferences are being determined by literally 20 people, 20 major donors, says Adav Noti, a US election lawyer with the Campaign Legal Center, in Washington DC.
So, what could be done to stop this happening here? The role of money in British politics could be reduced significantly. If the maximum individual donation was, say, 10,000 a year, parties would be forced to rely on a far wider, and more inclusive, donor base.
However, there is little sign of any willingness for change. The Committee on Standards in Public Life recently announced a long- overdue review of British electoral regulation, but the committees remit doesnt include party funding.
Political parties have a vested interest in the status quo, says Labour MP Stephen Kinnock, chair of a parliamentary working group on electoral reform. They would rather stay with the broken system we have currently, because they know how to maximise their advantage within it.
Britain, as Kinnock warns, is in the process of being Americanised. Dark money and dodgy data are playing an increasing role in our politics, he says. That is very dangerous. We have been complacent about our democracy.
As the US election is proving, faith in democracy is not a given. Unless we take steps now to end easily bought influence, our politics will look increasingly like Americas and trust in democracy and its institutions will fall even further.
Peter Geoghegans latest book, Democracy For Sale: Dark Money And Dirty Politics, is out now published by Head Of Zeus.
Read more here:
Buying power: Author warns democracy is for sale as parties put a price on influence and access bought and sold - The Sunday Post
- 6 Things New York Attorneys Need To Know About The New Surrogacy Law - Above the Law - February 16th, 2021
- Is Scarlet Witch Really In Control? Every Theory | Screen Rant - Screen Rant - February 11th, 2021
- The third wave that pushed Irish hospitals to the brink - RTE.ie - February 11th, 2021
- Candidates, Experts Discuss Potential Positives and Pitfalls of Ranked-Choice Voting Amid New York City Implementation - Gotham Gazette - February 4th, 2021
- One Year Of Fight Against Coronavirus, Has India Passed Its Peak? What To Expect Now, Dr Randeep Guleria Explains | Coronavirus Outbreak - Swachh... - February 4th, 2021
- Surrogacy reform is spreading in the rich world - The Economist - January 31st, 2021
- As teams prepare for Super Bowl Sunday, CDC says NFL's COVID-19 mitigation strategies are effective - Yahoo! Voices - January 31st, 2021
- The unregulated, All-Star-driven world of open enrollment loopholes in Texas high school football - The Dallas Morning News - January 15th, 2021
- The Twitter presidency is over. Or is it? - Vox.com - January 15th, 2021
- Peaceful transition of power is the American dream right now - Modern Diplomacy - December 28th, 2020
- News industry must seize opportunity restore trust | TheHill - The Hill - December 18th, 2020
- The GOP Hopes This Issue Will Tarnish Warnock's Pastor Image - The Daily Beast - December 18th, 2020
- The real US failure when it comes to globalization is not having a 21st century, social safety net - The Times of India Blog - December 18th, 2020
- Prevent your guacamole from browning with this airtight container - Yahoo! Voices - December 18th, 2020
- How Trump Won One of America's Most Diverse Counties By a Lot - POLITICO - December 14th, 2020
- Gwen Stefani and Blake Shelton holding off on wedding due to COVID-19 - Yahoo News Canada - December 14th, 2020
- Trump May Be Leaving, But 'Fake News' is a Part of All Our Lives Now | Opinion - Newsweek - November 30th, 2020
- Concerns over Thanksgiving gatherings continue as U.S. marks deadliest day in pandemic in months - Yahoo News - November 30th, 2020
- Will Biden administration be a repeat of Obama years? - Yahoo News - November 30th, 2020
- Fontana Residents 'Fed Up' With Possible Thanksgiving Day Planned Power Outages - Yahoo News - November 30th, 2020
- The Next Administration Should Bring the Shadow Wars into the Light - Defense One - November 26th, 2020
- Dan and Ray's traditional Thanksgiving meal will be curbside - Yahoo News - November 26th, 2020
- Thanksgiving 2020 At Home: Reasons We're Thankful - Yahoo News - November 26th, 2020
- Invisible campaign and the specter of socialism: Why Cuban Americans fell hard for Trump - Tampa Bay Times - November 26th, 2020
- Eagles fans, experts split on what to do with Carson Wentz - Yahoo News - November 26th, 2020
- The Damage Of Trumps International Anti-Abortion Policy Wont Be Easy To Undo - HuffPost - November 26th, 2020
- Painting the town: Murals meet the moment | Oregon ArtsWatch - Oregon ArtsWatch - November 11th, 2020
- Jill Biden: a chance to transform the role of first lady - FRANCE 24 - November 11th, 2020
- The Dem Hid From a Scandal. The Republican Attended Super-Spreader Events. Guess Who Racked up the Votes? - Mother Jones - November 11th, 2020
- Trump probably 'cant steal the election' but here's why you should be 'alarmed' anyway: conservative - AlterNet - November 11th, 2020
- The Trump Era Is Over. Our Leaders Want To Take Us Back To 2015 - Jacobin magazine - November 11th, 2020
- Opinion: The future of Fintech marketing - ETBrandEquity.com - November 11th, 2020
- Biden sleepwalks to the White House - Spectator.co.uk - November 11th, 2020
- Letters to the Editor 11/5/20 | Letters to the Editor | Bend - The Source Weekly - November 5th, 2020
- Florida Democrats Assess What Went Wrong For Biden With Latinos in the State - Newsweek - November 5th, 2020
- Whats at stake in Arizonas 2020 election - Cronkite News - November 5th, 2020
- HOW DUVAL SHAPED PAST ELECTIONS: Why Jacksonville is critical to winning the presidency - FirstCoastNews.com WTLV-WJXX - November 5th, 2020
- Jill Biden: A Chance To Transform The Role Of First Lady - NDTV - November 5th, 2020
- Election 2020 Live Blog - 90.5 WESA - November 5th, 2020
- 2020 Watch: Is Biden remaking the Democratic coalition? - Minneapolis Star Tribune - November 1st, 2020
- HOW DUVAL SHAPED PAST ELECTIONS: Why Jacksonville is critical to winning the presidency - The Florida Times-Union - November 1st, 2020
- How Joe Biden May Have Outmaneuvered Donald Trump On Energy, Climate, and the Economic Recovery - TIME - November 1st, 2020
- Presidential race shaping up to be tight in northern Maine - CBC.ca - November 1st, 2020
- Kamala Harris Urges Democrats To Keep Their Foot On The Pedal In Late Texas Visit - Patch.com - November 1st, 2020
- Emo-truthful Trump-Biden 2020: another post-truth election | OUPblog - OUPblog - November 1st, 2020
- Early Voting May Change the Impact of Last Week Blitz Campaigning - WOUB - October 29th, 2020
- Lagging in the Polls, Trump Team Predicts Win Based on 'Enthusiasm' - Newsweek - October 25th, 2020
- Network, GPS Will Be Jammed In Project Convergence 2021 - Breaking Defense - October 25th, 2020
- Surrogate Carrying Twins Shocked When Parents Say They No Longer Want The Babies - BabyGaga - October 25th, 2020
- Biden needs Black voters to turn out better than '16, in Florida and across nation - Sarasota Herald-Tribune - October 25th, 2020
- Trump vs. Biden: Here's how every region of the state plays its part in the race - Detroit Free Press - October 25th, 2020
- Weekly jobless claims fall to 787K | TheHill - The Hill - October 25th, 2020
- Wisconsin Democrats Are Organizing Like Mad. Will It Be Enough? - Vanity Fair - October 25th, 2020
- How Fox News analyst Arnon Mishkin will call the election - Los Angeles Times - October 25th, 2020
- My Wild 2 Weeks Inside the Trump Campaign Bubble - POLITICO - October 25th, 2020
- A burning planet: Why we must learn to live with fire - National Observer - October 25th, 2020
- Will Americans vote against Trump's behavior or for his achievements? | TheHill - The Hill - October 25th, 2020
- Salem 'Witch City' Massachusetts to triple fines over Halloween weekend amid coronavirus pandemic | TheHill - The Hill - October 25th, 2020
- Queensland election: has Palaszczuk helped defeat the politics of gender? - The Guardian - October 25th, 2020
- It's time to end employment discrimination for people with disabilities | TheHill - The Hill - October 25th, 2020
- Akufo-Addo Is The Most Serious Threat To Our Country And Democracy - We Change Him On December 7 Or We Suffer - Modern Ghana - October 25th, 2020
- Trumps top health official lies and says the US is doing as well as the rest of the world on COVID - AlterNet - October 25th, 2020
- Strategist on stimulus: the market has already priced it in - Yahoo Money - October 25th, 2020
- Cooper and Forest clash over masks, schools, and COVID-19 response in NC Governor debate - The Fayetteville Observer - October 16th, 2020
- Trump needs North Carolina in 2020 election, but the swing state is a toss-up - Citizen Times - October 16th, 2020
- 'All hands on deck': Stabenow works to build another blue wave in Michigan - Michigan Advance - October 16th, 2020
- Tom Stevenson In the Grey Zone: Proxy Warfare LRB 22 October 2020 - London Review of Books - October 16th, 2020
- Gentlemen against Trump - The Week - October 16th, 2020
- Battleground state of Wisconsin clashes over Trump and beyond - Anadolu Agency - October 16th, 2020
- Trump barely won Pennsylvania in 2016. His 2020 election may depend on keeping this swing state. - The Times - October 16th, 2020
- Somewhere in Whitehall a defence review is taking place - TheArticle - October 16th, 2020
- Air Force to Test Weapons Swarming Software in October - Air Force Magazine - September 23rd, 2020
- Improvised Mode: The Army Network Evolves In Project Convergence - Breaking Defense - September 23rd, 2020
- Biden Will Beat Expectations in the First Debate - Election Central - September 23rd, 2020
- On the trail: Visits part of Trump push in key battleground state - Concord Monitor - September 21st, 2020
- What's causing Western wildfires and how to stop them | TheHill - The Hill - September 21st, 2020
- Office working was already on the way out, Covid-19 has just hastened its end - iNews - September 21st, 2020
- Putin is about to turn his attention to the American way of life | TheHill - The Hill - September 21st, 2020
- Does the DHS Whistleblower Report Reveal an Election Interference Scandal? - Lawfare - September 21st, 2020
- Obituary of the Supreme Court justice - Sports Grind Entertainment - September 21st, 2020