“federal election”

independent agency responsible for administering and enforcing laws that cover federal election campaigns. The FEC oversees the public financing of presidential elections, ensures public disclosure of campaign finance activities, monitors campaign contributions and expenditures, regulates the campaign activities of political action committees (PACs), and investigates reports of violations. It is composed of six commissioners appointed by the president with the advice and consent of the Senate.

558 U.S. 50 (2010), held that corporate spending on political communications is protected by the First Amendment. In 2002, Congress passed the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act, also known as the McCain-Feingold Law, a section of which prohibited corporations and labor unions from making expenditures out of their general treasury funds for “electioneering communications,” or speech that supports or opposes a candidate for office. The Supreme Court found that this provision was a ban on protected political speech, violating the First Amendment to the Constitution. The ruling overturned Austin v. Chamber of Commerce, 494 U.S. 652 (1990) and partially overturned McConnell v. Federal Election Commission, 540 U.S. 93 (2003), which followed Austin. In overturning Austin, the Court cited two prior cases, Buckley v. Valeo, 424 U.S. 1 (1976) and First Nat. Bank of Boston v. Bellotti, 435 U.S. 765 (1978), stating, “We return to the principle established in Buckley and Bellotti that the Government may not suppress political speech on the basis of the speaker's corporate identity.” The Court upheld provisions of the Act requiring disclaimers for political advertisements and disclosure to the FEC of spending on electioneering communications.

set strict limits on the amount of money a particular corporation, union, or private individual could give to a candidate in a federal election. It also required candidates and political action committees (PACs) to disclose their receipts and identify their contributors. A 1974 amendment specified additional contribution limits and imposed spending limits for candidates in primary and general elections; however, the Supreme Court struck down the latter provision as unconstitutional in Buckley v. Valeo, 424 U.S. 1 (1976). The 1974 amendment also set up the Federal Election Commission and established public funding of presidential elections. Two additional amendments (1976, 1979) were aimed at regulating PACs and boosting the level of party participation.