A proposal to allow both sides in recall campaigns accept political donations has moved one step forward. That’s as the interior ministry approved a proposed amendment to the Political Donations Act on Thursday.
Under existing law, only political parties and those running for office can accept political donations. Groups pushing to recall a politician and politicians facing a recall vote are both barred from taking money. However, there have been concerns that this could make recall elections less fair- especially if one side has far more financial resources than the other.
The proposed amendment also tries to preempt abuse of the recall election system by limiting when donations can be accepted. Donations can only start after a recall campaign has entered its second stage with enough signatures in support collected. The interior ministry now plans to send the proposed amendment to the legislature for review.