“Senator Edwards raised serious issues of who controls Washington in his presidential campaign – and his message reverberated in both parties’ nomination contests. He leaves the race having elevated public awareness about the inextricable link between private special interest money in politics and how responsive government is to those most in need of a helping hand.

“The remaining Democratic candidates – Senators Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama – have already joined him in his call for public financing of elections to put voters ahead of big campaign donors. Republican presidential candidates ought to follow suit and leave aside the empty rhetoric and band-aid fixes in favor of Edwards’ call for real reform and empowering voters.

“While Edwards is leaving the race for the White House today, we are hopeful that he will continue to engage the public with the same clarity of message and purpose to end the stranglehold wealthy donors have on our government.”

Public Campaign Action Fund is a national nonpartisan group that advocates for comprehensive public financing of elections and campaigns to hold politicians accountable for opposing reform and doing favors for their big money donors.

To learn more, visit www.campaignmoney.org.

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