On Thursday, the League of Women Voters of San Diego will host a panel discussion on the influence of money in politics.

The program is appropriately titled, Is it One Person, One Vote or One Dollar, One Vote? and features panelists David Loy, Legal Director at the ACLU of San Diego & Imperial Counties, John Lawrence of the San Diego Free Press, and Michael Aguirre, former San Diego city attorney.

With the 2016 presidential campaigns in full force, candidates have already spent close to $100 million. These numbers do not even reflect the overwhelming contributions of corporations and private donors to super PACs and Independent Expenditure Committees.

Some issues that the League has researched in the past include:

1. The role of dark money in influencing our elections
2. The role of the partisan regulatory board, the Federal Election Commission
3. The impact of recent Supreme Court decisions on the amount corporations and wealthy individuals can donate to political campaigns.

The League has conducted substantial research on the topic which can find here.

The event is on Thursday, October 22, 2015, at 11:30 am - 1:30 pm at Tom Ham’s Lighthouse Restaurant. The Independent Voter Project is co-sponsering the event.