Sam Allard | May 12, 2025
https://www.axios.com/local/cleveland/2025/05/12/democracy-day-city-hall-money-politics
Illustration: Brendan Lynch/Axios
A community-led "Democracy Day" hearing arrives at Cleveland City Hall Monday as part of the national movement to get corporate money out of politics.
The big picture: Cleveland is among more than 20 Ohio municipalities that have passed resolutions since 2012 pushing Congress to amend the U.S. Constitution to declare that money is not speech.
- Cities adopted these resolutions at the urging of advocacy groups like Move to Amend in response to the Citizens United Supreme Court decision in 2010.
- Cleveland's 2016 ordinance established a biennial public hearing at City Hall to allow the community to explore these topics.
What they're saying: "We are witnessing in real time the increasing political and economic power of the super wealthy and corporations in our country to influence not only our elections, but public policies on health care, education, food, jobs, transportation, energy, and the natural world," said Cleveland Heights resident Greg Coleridge, national co-director of Move to Amend, in a statement.
Between the lines: The meeting comes a month after HBO released "Ohio Confidential," a documentary that unraveled the HB6 bribery scandal.
💭 Sam's thought bubble: HB6 is, of course, a striking example of how a single corporation can warp public policy with big bucks.
- But corporate money influences local policy as well, from tax abatements to pro sports subsidies.
Stop by: The Cleveland meeting will be 5-6:30pm on the second floor of City Hall.
- Councilman Kris Harsh will moderate.
