How Lamont helped revive public financing in governor’s races

It’s an irony that Gov. Ned Lamont occasionally mentions: An independently wealthy self-funder of five statewide campaigns played a role in making public financing relevant once again to campaigns for governor. And yes, that wealthy self-funder is Lamont. Lamont agreed in 2023 to an overhaul of the Citizens’ Election Program that has provided about $22 million in public financing this year for the purpose of denying him a third term: $3.75 million for Josh Elliott to oppose Lamont in a Democratic primary, and $18 million for his Republican challenger Ryan Fazio. The overhaul addressed three shortcomings: Qualifying for the gubernatorial campaign grants was too hard; the money came too late in the election cycle; and the grants were too little be competitive in a gubernatorial race — $7.7 million for a general-election campaign and $1.6 million for a primary. Lamont, meanwhile, spent $25.7 million winning reelection four years ago, most of it from a single donor named Ned. His Republican opponent, Bob Stefanowski, also a wealthy self-funder, spent $14.5 million. As of Aug. 31, Lamont had kicked in $10.2 million to his 2026 campaign. Here’s what to know about the state’s public campaign financing program. What is the history of public campaign financing in Connecticut? The voluntary Citizens’ Election Program is a rarity in U.S. politics. It sets spending and fundraising limits and provides public financing to run for the General Assembly and the statewide constitutional offices of governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of the state, comptroller, treasurer and attorney general. It is the product of a deal cut by a Republican governor, M. Jodi Rell, and the Democratic majority in the General Assembly during a special session in 2005 — the year after Rell’s predecessor, John G. Rowland, resigned in the face of an impeachment inquiry and federal criminal investigation into gifts from state contractors and bid rigging. Rell wanted a ban on campaign contributions from state contractors and lobbyists, long a source of campaign cash in Connecticut. Democrats agreed, but only if Rell accepted the state financing of campaigns. A court challenge forced the state to allow lobbyists contributions, albeit with limits. But the ban on state contractors contributing to state campaigns stood. Public financing has been used by the vast majority of candidates for every eligible office, save one: governor. Besides Lamont, several others vying for the state’s top elected role have also self-funded their campaigns. Using public financing, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy defeated two self-funders in 2010: Lamont in a primary, then Republican Tom Foley in the general. No major-party nominee for governor has been publicly financed since 2014. How does it work? The concept is simple: Candidates qualify by demonstrating broad support, raising small-dollar donations. They also must abide by spending limits. In return, they get public financing. The qualifying threshold and resulting grants vary based on the office sought, with the lowest amounts pegged to races for the state House of Representatives and biggest for governor. A major-party candidate running for the House in 2026 would have to raise $6,700 in qualifying contributions; for Senate, $20,100; for statewide constitutional offices other than governor, $100,700; for governor, the threshold is $335,500. The majority of the qualifying contributions must be raised in the communities a legislative candidate hopes to represent. For a statewide candidate, the majority must come from donors in Connecticut. The qualifying contributions can range from $5 to $340. The major-party general election grants this year are $38,575 for a state House race; $115,725 for state Senate; $1,125,750 for statewide constitutional officers other than governor and lieutenant governor; and $18,001,704 for governor and lieutenant governor. In a primary, candidates for lieutenant governor and governor run separately and can qualify for separate grants. In the general election, they run as a ticket and can get the one shared grant of slightly more than $18 million. There are other wrinkles. General election grants are reduced if the candidate has limited or no opposition. They also are reduced if the candidate is late in raising the qualifying contributions necessary to apply. For a full grant, the application deadline this year was Aug. 24. The grants dropped to 75% on Sept. 4 and will fall to 65% on Sept. 21, 55% on Oct. 5 and 40% on the final day to apply, Oct. 9. What about candidates for federal office? Federal law dictates the campaign finance rules for candidates for federal office, and they are not eligible for public financing through the Citizens’ Election Program. The maximum individual contribution to a candidate for Congress is $3,500. Are minor parties and petitioning candidates shut out? Not entirely. Nominees of minor parties can get the full grant if their party won 20% of the vote in the previous election for the office now being sought or if they get signatures from the number of voters that equal 20% of that vote, the latter being a task that elections officials cannot recall anyone ever achieving. By comparison, getting on the ballot is far easier. Unaffiliated candidates who petition for a place on the ballot need only get the number of signatures equal to 1% of the vote in the previous election or 7,500, whichever is less. Lesser grants also are available: a two-thirds grant for minor party that got 15% of the vote in the previous election or by petitioning; a one-third grant for 10%. Candidates who qualify for partial grants are permitted to raise additional money. How has the program changed? Aside from raising the grants and giving the State Elections Enforcement Commission authority to periodically adjust them based on inflation, the legislature and governor agreed to make it easier to qualify by raising the original limit on contributions from $100 to $290 in 2022 and to $340 this year. The original law also barred the payment of a grant until a candidate was either the nominee of their party or had qualified for a primary. Neither of those things are possible in Connecticut until May. That is not a problem for down-ballot races, but gubernatorial campaigns get going far earlier. For the first time, candidates who had raised the qualifying amounts could get a pre-convention grant of $937,588, essentially an advance payment that would be subtracted from the $3.75 million primary grant. What are the limits on contributions to candidates who opt out of the voluntary CEP? By law, the maximum contribution to a candidate for governor in Connecticut is $3,500 for both a primary and general election. The contribution limits are lower for down-ballot races.