In 2023, founder of now defunct electric vehicle company Nikola Trevor Milton was sentenced to four years in prison for defrauding his investors with untrue claims about the company’s technology and business prospects.
In 2024, Milton donated almost $1.95 million to President Donald Trump’s reelection campaign. Following Trump’s reelection, he was granted an unconditional pardon. When asked about the pardon, the president claimed Milton was unfairly targeted because of his loyalty to Trump, despite there being no evidence to back this claim. The victims of Milton’s crimes were unable to recover the $660 million they were owed.
Since the 2010 Citizens United ruling, this has been just one of many examples of the campaign finance system being used to corrupt politicians. This creates an imminent threat to democracy and the well-being of the American people.
During former Arizona senator Kyrsten Sinema’s campaign, she received over $1 million on behalf of some of the nation’s largest pharmaceutical companies. When it came time to vote on a bill that would have allowed government officials to negotiate with pharmaceutical companies to lower prices of life-saving drugs for Americans, Sinema was a key holdout in an evenly split Senate.
As a result, the final bill only allowed for negotiation on 10 drugs, resulting in more money in the pockets of big pharma at the expense of Sinema’s constituents. Instances like this undermine democracy by encouraging politicians to disregard the interests of the public in the name of corporate loyalty.
Campaign financing is key for anyone seeking elected office, especially those challenging an incumbent. Major contributions pay for political advertising and events, which are crucial. Interest groups can specifically target a candidate and alter the outcome of an election, undermining the democratic ideals this nation prides itself on.
Unfortunately, as long as those in power continue to engage in this mutually beneficial corruption, it is unlikely that any major reform will take place to prevent it. However, one way that citizens can navigate this corruption is by using publicly available campaign finance information to inform their vote. In the Ohio gubernatorial race, it’s notable that despite having twice as many individual donors overall as Democratic frontrunner Amy Acton, only 57% of Republican frontrunner Vivek Ramaswamy’s donations are from Ohio residents as opposed to Acton’s 70%. Additionally, the average contribution to Acton is significantly lower than Ramaswamy’s average, according to public campaign finance records.
These statistics can give voters insight into who has interest in getting particular candidates elected and who these candidates will prioritize should they win. In this instance, Acton’s smaller average donations and more local donor base point to her being the candidate more likely to advocate for the working Ohioan.
From Congress to the campaign trail, wealthy donors and interest groups continually disrupt elections, plant seeds of corruption and undermine the very systems our democracy thrives on. If Americans can use campaign finance information to inform their vote and scrutinize corruption when it rears its ugly head, then an uncontaminated democracy may prevail.
Published and digitized March 2026.
