Bradley A. Smith is a lawyer and law professor who founded the Institute for Free Speech. He previously chaired the Federal Election Commission and writes about campaign finance and political speech.
DI has documented statements by Bradley A. Smith on Campaign Finance, Free Speech, and U.S. Politics. Read the quotations, original sources and related cases below.
Role at the time: Institute for Free Speech founder and former FEC chair
Defended or excused
Statement summary
Smith writes that the ruling has let new, often important voices be heard and that its critics' predictions were wrong.
“The decision has allowed new, often important voices to be heard”
Open source (opens in a new tab)Bradley A. Smith defends Citizens UnitedConcluding paragraphs; original essay dated January 22, 2025
Why we used this label
The reference point is constitutional protection for independent corporate and union election spending. Smith defends the ruling as allowing new political voices to reach voters.
The Supreme Court protected corporate and union independent election spending in Citizens United. Defenders say the ruling protects political speech and association. Critics say it gives wealthy interests excessive influence and undermines democratic accountability.
