Big-Money Interests in Small-State Politics: Demystifying the connection between Super PAC activity and Hawaiʻi’s election outcomes

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dc.contributor.advisorMoore, Colin
dc.contributor.authorLeval, Micah
dc.contributor.departmentPolitical Science
dc.date.accessioned2023-01-12T00:03:04Z
dc.date.available2023-01-12T00:03:04Z
dc.date.issued2020
dc.description.abstractSince the Supreme Court’s landmark ruling in Citizens United v. Federal Elections Commission (2010), there has been much public discussion and scholarly research regarding the effects of Super PACs on American elections. However, much of this research falls short of characterizing the effects of Super PACs at the state and local levels. In addition, because of Hawaiʻi’s unique history and political landscape, I argue that past Super PAC research is not entirely applicable to Hawaiʻi politics. Therefore, the present study characterizes the effects of Super PACs specifically on recent Hawaiʻi elections. With a focus on both quantitative and qualitative data collection, this exploratory study puts the results of my elite survey methodology in conversation with what is already known about Super PACs locally and nationally. As a result of this investigation, I have generally concluded that (1) Super PAC activity have indeed greatly influenced recent Hawaiʻi election outcomes, (2) Super PACs have influenced Hawaiʻi elections in at least two specific ways, (3) perceptions and attitudes toward Super PAC activity in Hawaiʻi can vary greatly depending on who is asked, and (4) despite this variance, there is some agreement regarding what changes should be made to current campaign finance laws. The findings of this research help to demystify the understudied connection between Super PAC activity and Hawaiʻi politics. With these research as a conversation starter, I also encourage additional, more robust quantitative (i.e., statistical) investigations into the effects of Super PACs on Hawaiʻi politics.
dc.format.extent74 pages
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10125/104468
dc.publisherUniversity of Hawaii at Manoa
dc.rightsAll UHM Honors Projects are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission from the copyright owner.
dc.titleBig-Money Interests in Small-State Politics: Demystifying the connection between Super PAC activity and Hawaiʻi’s election outcomes
dc.type.dcmiText

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