Three states ban foreign funding of ballot measures amid concerns of influence on elections

Three states banned foreign funding of ballot initiative campaigns as election integrity proponents have raised concerns over non-citizens influencing elections.

Kansas, Kentucky, and Wyoming took action during this year’s legislative sessions after Ohio was the first state to enact a ban on foreign nationals from donating to ballot measure campaigns. The laws followed reports that nonprofits donating to ballot initiative campaigns received funding from foreign nationals. The most noteworthy report was after Texas Attorney General Paxton petitioned the Federal Election Commission to implement more rigorous checks, particularly on the left-wing fundraising platform Act Blue, who, according to The New York Post "changed its fraud policy twice during the 2024 campaign, implementing “more lenient” standards that let foreign and other suspicious donor money flow into US campaigns," citing internal company documents.

Last Monday, Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly (D) announced that she would let House Bill 2106, which bans foreign funding of ballot measure campaigns, become law without her signature. “I cannot sign a bill that takes away the ability of Kansans and Kansas businesses to support elections if they accept money from overseas for any purpose, not just those related to elections,” she said.

“I support stopping foreign influence in our elections so that Kansans can decide what’s best for Kansas. Federal law already prohibits foreign nationals from contributing to federal, state, or local elections. If the Legislature had crafted something similar for Kansas, I would have signed it. But this bill goes too far,” Kelly said in a statement.

"Commonsense policies"

The Kansas law states that anyone engaged in ballot measure campaigns may not knowingly accept “contributions or expenditures either directly or indirectly from a foreign national.”

Jason Snead, executive director of Honest Elections Project Action, praised Kansas legislators in a statement on Tuesday for banning both foreign funding and ranked-choice voting. “The Kansas legislature has made the Sunflower State a national leader on election integrity. Banning foreign influence in ballot issue campaigns and outlawing ranked-choice voting are commonsense policies that will help protect the integrity of elections for all Kansans,” Snead said.

“These new laws make Kansas the third state this year to ban foreign influence, and the 14th state in the nation to ban ranked-choice voting. Foreign nationals are already barred from donating to individual candidates and Super PACS – ballot issue campaigns should be no different."

Kansas was the most recent state to ban foreign funding of ballot measure campaigns. Ohio started the trend last year.

In June, Ohio enacted a law prohibiting foreign nationals from funding state ballot issue campaigns, including before the measures secure their place on the ballot. The law was amended in the state House before passage to include a ban on contributions from green card residents. The statute also lets the Ohio attorney general investigate complaints instead of the state election commission, which oversees all other complaints related to elections.

The law followed reports about left-wing Swiss billionaire Hansjorg Wyss, who lives in Wyoming and donates to nonprofits that give funds to influence U.S. politics and ballot measure campaigns. Two nonprofits that Wyss started have spent a total of $652 million in support of left-wing political causes for about 20 years.

One of Wyss’ nonprofits has given more than $278 million to the Sixteen Thirty Fund, an organization with the Arabella Advisors network, which has spent $130 million on ballot measure issues in 26 states since 2014.

In January 2024, Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose (R) called for the law to ban foreign donations to be enacted after his office found foreign funding of ballot measure campaigns in his state.

Hundreds of millions of dollars from overseas

“In reviewing the campaign finance records associated with two statewide constitutional ballot issues in 2023, my staff compiled evidence showing foreign nationals have funneled hundreds of millions of dollars into 501(c) entities, which then spent millions of dollars in Ohio to influence the outcomes of these proposed constitutional amendments,” LaRose said in a statement at the time.

Elias Law Group, a Democratic election law firm, filed a federal lawsuit over the Ohio law last year, which is ongoing. A federal judge blocked the state from enforcing the law in August, ruling that it violated the First Amendment right to free speech for lawful permanent residents. In October, the preliminary injunction was stayed pending appeal by Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost (R) and LaRose.

Mark Elias famously asked the Federal Election Commission last November to allow a political action committee funded by billionaire George Soros to coordinate with Democratic campaigns and party committees in Texas for voter turnout efforts. The FEC approved the petition. The ABA Journal said "It wasn’t long before the Trump campaign used the opinion to coordinate with groups funded by Tesla CEO Elon Musk and other wealthy donors."

Meanwhile, other states have continued to enact their own laws banning foreign donations to ballot measure campaigns.

Kentucky was the second state to ban foreign funding of ballot initiative campaigns this year.

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear (D) signed House Bill 45 into law on March 24th, which prohibits foreign nationals from making donations or soliciting other people to make donations in an effort to influence a ballot measure. “Kentucky voters deserve elections that are free from foreign influence, and today the Kentucky legislature delivered, making Kentucky the third state to ban foreign funding of ballot issue campaigns,” Snead said in a statement last month.

“For years, a loophole in federal law has left state ballot issues susceptible to citizens of foreign adversaries being able to affect our democratic process," he said, "which has been taken advantage of by Swiss billionaire Hansjorg Wyss through his prolific giving to the Left-wing Sixteen Thirty Fund. Fortunately for Kentuckians, that ends today.”

Caitlin Sutherland, executive director of Americans For Public Trust, told The Center Square last month, “Closing this foreign funding loophole is a big win for the people of Kentucky. For far too long, ballot issue campaigns have been an opening for foreign megadonors to influence politics across America, and this ban sends the message loud and clear that foreign dark money has no place in the Bluegrass State.”

On March 6th, Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon (R) signed legislation that also bans foreign funding of ballot measures in the state.

The new law prohibits non-citizens from funding any statewide initiative or referendum petition drive and requires political action committees or other organizations that support or oppose such measures to file reports with the secretary of state attesting that they did not knowingly receive monetary donations from foreign nationals or entities.

"This bill, a key plank of our conservative election integrity agenda, is a landmark piece of legislation and pivotal to ensuring foreign nationals are banned from meddling in Wyoming elections," the Wyoming secretary of state’s office posted on X following the governor’s signing of the bill.