1 Inequities in Campaign Money and Contribution Mandates in State Legislatures

Abstract: There are large inequities in the amount of campaign money raised by state legislators, as legislators in the top 10 % raise over six times more than legislators in the bottom 10%. Do these inequities affect bill outcomes in state legislatures? Are resource rich legislators more or less successful policy-makers? This paper considers two possible effects. First, contributions could provide a mandate for a legislator’s policy agenda such that campaign money increases legislative success. Alternatively, maintaining a large network of donors might divert a legislator’s time and energy away from the chamber such that contributions inhibit legislative success. An analysis of a large data set of over 55,000 bills in four lower chambers supports the mandate hypothesis. Top fundraisers sponsor more bills, longer bills, and are more likely to have those bills become law than legislators with less campaign money