Qualified Voters

"Qualified Voters"...only! The right to vote is at the heart of representative government and that right should not be overcome by some other mechanism allowing a non-voter such as a corporation or union to make donations to a candidate or speak on behalf of a candidate. In addition, if one cannot vote for a candidate no donation to that candidate should be permitted. Consequently, a voter in New York could not contribute to a Senate candidate in Florida. Nor could a Florida voter contribute to a candidate for governor in New York. Qualified voters means only those people who can vote in the specific election in which their candidate is running. If we only allow qualified voters to contribute to a candidate, the finances available to candidates would come only from those people who can actually vote for a candidate and the amount of money would reflect the means and desires of the electorate not those of some outside entities that should have no stake in the election's outcome.