Arizona's New Publicly Financed Campaign Program Gets A Shakedown Cruise.
Candidates do have to do some fundraising before they become eligible for public dollars.
But given that those dollars are being spent on political campaigns, you could make the argument that it is indeed money for nothing. When Arizona voters narrowly approved the Clean Elections Initiative in 1998, they created a complex system designed to limit the influence of special interests in the legislative process. Well, it's off to a slow start. Of the hundreds of candidates eligible for public financing, only 35 have signed contracts with the Clean Elections Commission to participate. Of those, only 20 have received checks, while another eight have submitted paperwork to qualify.