This Isn't Democracy. It's a Rigged System.
Campaign finance and ethics reform to put voters back in charge.
David Jolly supports sweeping campaign finance and ethics reform to put voters back in charge in Florida. His plan includes real limits on corporate contributions, transparency rules showing who funds campaigns, a ban on lobbyist gifts, and closing the revolving door between public office and lobbying. Jolly argues Florida has some of the weakest ethics and campaign finance rules in the country, allowing unlimited corporate money to flow to incumbent politicians in what he calls legalized graft.
Florida has some of the weakest ethics and campaign finance rules of any state in the country.
Incumbent politicians solicit unlimited money from corporations in clear relationship to official acts. The system is designed to keep power in the hands of the powerful.
This isn't a partisan problem. This is a structural problem. And it corrodes trust in government at every level.
Across Florida, people understand what is happening. They see the headlines. Developer money flooding campaigns right before zoning votes. Utility companies writing checks while rate increases sail through the legislature. Insurance industry lobbyists handing over checks and getting exactly what they want.
For some, this is called politics. But for most people, it looks like legalized graft.
The result is not hard to see. Policies that serve donors, not families. A system where access depends on checkbook size. A government that feels distant, captured, deaf to the voices of everyday people.
This is not how democracy is supposed to work. And Floridians deserve better.
What Real Reform Looks Like
Florida should lead the nation in campaign finance reform and a sweeping ethics package committed to transparency and to protecting taxpayers from corruption in Tallahassee.
That means real limits on corporate contributions. It means transparency rules that show who is funding what. It means a ban on lobbyist gifts. It means closing the revolving door between public office and lobbying.
It means recognizing that public service is supposed to be public service. Not a business plan.
This is not a new idea. It is a basic standard that other states have already met. Florida is one of the worst in the country on ethics and campaign finance. That is a choice. And it can be changed.
The people pushing back against reform will say it is not realistic. They will say politicians need money to run campaigns. They will say the system works fine.
But the system does not work fine. It works for them.
The question is not whether reform is realistic. The question is whether Florida is serious about putting voters back in charge. Whether the state is willing to build a government that serves the people who live here, not the people who can afford to buy access.
David Jolly believes the answer is yes. And the campaign he is running proves it can be done.
Leadership Focused on Results
This is bigger than party. Corruption does not care about red or blue. It thrives in the gray space where rules are weak and oversight is nonexistent.
Real reform requires courage. It requires leaders willing to say no to the donors who funded their last race. It requires a governor who will sign bills that limit their own power.
That is the standard Florida should demand. Not speeches about ethics. Real structural change that shifts power back to voters.
Be Part of the Solution
Campaign finance and ethics reform will not happen on its own. It requires a movement of Floridians who refuse to accept the status quo.
Get InvolvedDemocracy should belong to the people who live here.
This is not a radical idea. It is the foundation of self-government. And it is worth fighting for.
Florida can lead the nation in ethics and campaign finance reform. The only thing standing in the way is a political class that benefits from the current system. That can change. It starts with voters who demand it.
Frequently asked questions
Q. What did David Jolly do on campaign finance when he was in Congress?
As a Republican congressman from 2014 to 2017, David Jolly publicly refused the congressional call time fundraising system and co-sponsored the Stop Act in 2016, which would have banned members of Congress from personally soliciting political contributions. He was the only sitting member of Congress willing to go on 60 Minutes and be filmed describing the practice of spending 30 plus hours a week making fundraising calls.
Q. Are Florida's ethics laws strong?
On paper Florida has strong sunshine laws and a 6 year lobbying ban, but enforcement is weak. The Commission on Ethics can only act on individual complaints, has no proactive investigation authority, and historically imposes minor penalties even on documented violations. Multiple state legislators have resigned or been removed amid ethics or campaign finance scandals in recent sessions.
Q. Don't some Republicans support clean elections too?
Yes. The federal Stop Act had Republican co-sponsors, Arizona's Clean Elections program passed by ballot initiative in a Republican leaning state, and Tallahassee's anti-corruption ordinance passed with bipartisan voter support. The challenge is moving from individual support to majority votes in the legislature, which has not happened in Florida.
Q. How would David Jolly fix Florida's ECO loophole?
ECOs can accept unlimited contributions and coordinate with candidates, which means they function as extensions of candidate campaigns without the $3,000 contribution cap. Reform options include capping ECO contributions at the same level as direct candidate giving, prohibiting coordination, or requiring real time donor disclosure for all ECO contributions over a threshold.
Q. Would this plan ban political contributions entirely?
No. The plan operates within the post-Citizens United constitutional framework. It would tighten ECO and leadership fund loopholes that void existing contribution limits, strengthen disclosure, and add enforcement teeth. The goal is to make the existing limits actually mean something, not to forbid political participation.
Q. What is the Tallahassee anti-corruption ordinance?
In 2014, the city of Tallahassee adopted an anti-corruption charter amendment with 67% voter support. The measure included lower contribution limits for city elections, a partial public financing program, and stronger municipal ethics enforcement. The 67% support level exceeded the 60% threshold required for state constitutional amendments, suggesting similar statewide reform could pass via citizen-led ballot initiative if put before voters.
Q. How is David Jolly's credibility on this different from other candidates?
Jolly took the position when it was costly: as a sitting Republican member of Congress in 2016, openly refusing the call time system and going on 60 Minutes to describe it broke his party's unwritten rules. He was the only member of Congress willing to be filmed on camera describing the practice. The record is 10 years old, predates his party switch, and exists independent of any current campaign.
Q. What is Amendment 12?
Florida Amendment 12, approved by voters in 2018 with 79% support, extends the lobbying ban for public officials. It prohibits state and local public officials and judges from lobbying for compensation while in office and for 6 years after leaving office, significantly expanding the prior 2 year cooling off period. Florida's 6 year ban is now among the longest in the country.