Hawaii Governor Signs Law Barring Corporate Election Spending

Josh Green signed a Hawaii law on Thursday that bars corporations from spending money on elections, starting July 1, 2027. The legislation redefines corporate personhood by classifying corporations as artificial persons who lack the constitutional right to make political donations, a novel approach designed to circumvent the 2010 U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission.

The bill passed the Hawaii state legislature with bipartisan support, sponsored by State Senators Jarrett Keohokalole and Karl Rhoads. It applies to for-profit companies, unions, chambers of commerce, and dark-money nonprofits, while exempting journalistic work and company-organized PACs. The legal strategy was developed by the Center for American Progress, inspired by similar efforts in Montana, with senior fellow Tom Moore architecting the approach of reversing Citizens United through state corporate charters rather than campaign-finance regulation.

Hawaii Attorney General Anne Lopez opposed the measure at every stage, warning the legislature that the bill would likely be rejected by courts as a violation of corporate free speech and would prove costly and difficult to defend. Despite her opposition, the bill advanced and was signed into law. Campaign finance watchdogs and Democratic lawmakers praised the legislation as a model for other states seeking to curb dark money. U.S. Representative Gregorio Casar, chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, hailed the law as a way to fight back against the Supreme Court, while Issue One's Michael Beckel described it as a model for the country.