New Study of Campaign Money

A new report from the Campaign Finance Institute finds:

• First, the national political parties have continued to make up for the soft money they lost, but the new money comes from individual donors at all levels and not just from small donors.
• Second, it has become clear that the parties' financial stories must be seen as being intertwined with those of their candidates. Presidential fundraising strategies strongly affect the Democratic and Republic National Committees while Members of Congress have become among the most significant supporters of the House and Senate campaign committees.
• Third, because of the way the presidential candidates and their parties have long worked together, it is not possible to say in a meaningful way from the parties' financial figures alone that the national parties have played a less (or more) prominent role in presidential elections after BCRA than before.
• Fourth, however, we can say that the congressional parties are every bit as prominent in House and Senate elections as they ever have been. Their receipts are up, while their independent spending made them the dominant voice during the closing weeks of many if not most of the close elections for the House and Senate in 2006 and 2008.