Green New City: Money in Politics

Wayne Hsiung
1 min readAug 16, 2020

Money has an incredible corrupting impact on politics. Studies show that donors are many times more likely to get access than non-donors. One particularly disturbing study showed that ordinary people have almost no influence on policy, while economic elites have enormous influence — 15 times more than ordinary people.

Berkeley passed a historic campaign finance law to get money out of politics. In exchange for swearing off corporate PAC money AND large donations, candidates receive a 6:1 matching fund for every Berkeley donor, up to $50. Our campaign believes in getting money out of politics, and has committed to taking public financing whenever it is possible.

We are taking only $50 donations and will represent the entire city of Berkeley. Our vision for Berkeley will not be held hostage by corporations nor wealthy individuals once I’m elected; we aren’t in anyone’s pocket and promise to listen to the concerns of ordinary people. We believe every candidate should opt for public financing and eschew donations from powerful interests.

If you share our vision for Berkeley, sign up to join the movement at www.wayneformayor.com/volunter.

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Wayne Hsiung

Candidate for Mayor of Berkeley, 2020. Environmental attorney, grassroots organizer, co-founded DxE, former visiting law professor. WayneForMayor.com