Luke Rosiak

Door-to-door ground game walks fine line

Conservative nonprofit groups have spent tens of millions of dollars on overtly political advertising this election season, testing the limits of what is legal under campaign rules that restrict how much such groups can spend on advocacy.

October 15, 2012

Democrats claim lead in battleground voter registration

Led by a surge in Hispanic voters, President Obama's campaign said Thursday that Democrats are leading the party registration fight in nearly every battleground state this fall as campaign officials try to combat disillusionment among Democrats after last week's presidential debate.

October 11, 2012

Among donors, a few ZIP codes put extra zip in campaign coffers

For Democrats, much of the money to fund the big-ticket national races this year is coming from donors in Hollywood and Chicago, while Republicans are relying — to a lesser extent — on cash from supporters in greater Houston and Fairfield, Conn., a geographical analysis of campaign contributions shows.

October 10, 2012

Super PACs’ role in race falls short of expectations

The blistering super-PAC war during the Republicans' presidential primaries seemed to presage a long, nasty fight all the way through Election Day.

October 9, 2012

Court dismisses RNC’s contribution-ceiling challenge

The Republican National Committee (RNC) was dealt a blow as a federal court on Friday denied a major donor's request to revist rules that limit the total amount donors can give to federal politicians.

October 2, 2012

Politics stifle federal election agency

The Federal Election Commission wasn't always so dysfunctional.

October 1, 2012

Contrarian donors sail against prevailing political wind

It's lonely being a supporter of President Obama in Provo, Utah. In the past several months, locals have given $550,000 to the two presidential campaigns, but only $29,000 — 5.3 percent — has gone to the Democrat.

September 27, 2012

Cash-rich GOP super PACs flood blue states with ads

More than 8 in 10 Philadelphians voted for President Obama in 2008, and he bested Republican Sen. John McCain by comfortable margins in every county surrounding it. But to watch local television now, one would think the fifth-largest city in the nation was a Republican stronghold.

September 24, 2012

Flurry of Romney ad buys targets D.C.

Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney has made a slew of major ad purchases in the Washington market — a spurt of activity for a campaign that trails badly in the advertising wars, and one that will reach not only voters in the swing state of Virginia but also potentially help shape the national political and media impressions of the race.

September 24, 2012

Obama again far outraising, outspending Romney

President Obama's campaign raised more than double what Republican nominee Mitt Romney did in August, with Mr. Romney's haul from small donors its smallest in three months and the former Massachusetts governor relying on a $2,500 maxed-out donors for two-thirds of his funds, filings showed Thursday.

September 20, 2012

Donors to nonprofit campaign groups can remain secret

With the presidential campaign now entering in its final phase, a federal appeals court Tuesday overturned a ruling that had discouraged secret-money outside groups from running advertisements during that critical time.

September 18, 2012

Toothless, overwhelmed FEC is ignored by campaigns

This year's political campaigns are saturated with money, yet the Federal Election Commission, the watchdog on all the raising and spending, is issuing fewer warnings and completing fewer audits — and even when it does issue fines, political committees routinely don't bother to pay.

September 17, 2012