Early in 2017, I watched a livestream of a U.S. Senate vote on a bill to lower the costs of pharmaceuticals. The bill wasn’t likely to pass, but I was interested in seeing who voted for this bill, and who didn’t. To my shock, a senator from another state, who had claimed to support the bill, voted against it. He voted against his own stated beliefs, and against the interests of his constituents. What was going on? A quick search revealed a likely explanation: This senator’s state is home to many pharmaceutical companies, and those companies had contributed heavily to his reelection campaign. Elections are expensive and politicians feel pressure to keep big donors happy. This senator is not alone, unfortunately. Thanks to a series of  Supreme Court decisions over the past 50 years, money has flooded into our political system, allowing large corporations and wealthy individuals to have louder voices and more influence than you and I do as citizens. One of these troubling decisions, Citizens United, was handed down 15 years ago, on Jan. 21, 2010. Its impact is vividly clear from charts showing the influx of money into U.S. politics increasing dramatically at every level in the years since. Money impacts all races, from local school board and statehouse races to federal races. This flood of money is drowning out the voices of most Americans, and it has undermined the vision of the founders of our country. The U.S. Constitution states in Article 1 that decisions about how to choose our representatives should be made by Congress and by the states. However, when the Supreme Court decided Citizens United, it overturned the laws of 24 states that regulated money in politics, allowing wealthy donors and organizations to overwhelm voters’ voices. There are supporters in all 50 states and across the full spectrum of American political life. Twenty-two states and counting have already called on Congress to propose the amendment, and active work is happening in a dozen other states right now. In 2024, more than $20 billion was spent on federal and state campaigns. A record-shattering $4.5 billion of that was money from outside the control of the candidates. Over $1 billion was dark money. We don’t know where the dark money came from, who gave it, or how much influence those entities have over candidates they supported. In the 2023 Kentucky gubernatorial campaign, the two nominees’ campaigns and outside groups together spent $65 million. Think about that — think how far $65 million would go toward meeting the needs of Kentuckians.  Think how much our infrastructure and our schools would benefit from the money currently poured into campaigns. In 2023, running in the Republican primary to challenge Gov. Andy Beshear, candidate Kelly Craft donated $10 million of her own money to her campaign. How many of us have the kind of money that would allow us to spend $10 million seeking public office? These numbers are so overwhelming that it can feel impossible to address this problem, even though a large majority of Americans — and, according to a 2023 Citizen Data Poll, 73% of Kentuckians — support limiting money in our campaigns and elections. However, a few years ago, a group of concerned citizens took action. They formed American Promise, a nationwide, cross-partisan organization committed to a simple and powerful goal: ratifying an amendment to the United States Constitution that would empower the states and Congress to restore reasonable limits on money in our campaigns and elections. The For Our Freedom constitutional amendment proposed by American Promise would restore the ability of state legislators and Congress to put limits on election spending. This would increase the political representation of ordinary Americans, free states and communities from outside influence, and stop foreign interests and anonymous donors from interfering in U.S elections. The For Our Freedom amendment has momentum. There are supporters in all 50 states and across the full spectrum of American political life. Twenty-two states and counting have already called on Congress to propose the amendment, and active work is happening in a dozen other states right now. The goal is to have Congress call for the amendment with a two-thirds vote, and states to ratify the amendment by 2026, the 250th anniversary of American independence. Today, the legitimacy of our system and the rule of law are at risk. Hard-working Americans who can’t afford to participate in pay-to-play politics are angry. They see their representatives listening to their wealthy donors much more than to their constituents. We can change this. We can reclaim an equal voice in our democracy. The power lies where it always has: with us, with the people. You can  learn more about the For Our Freedom amendment at americanpromise.net.  The post Americans can stem the flood of political money that’s drowning out their voices appeared first on The Lexington Times.