Brownsburg Area Patrons Affecting Change v. Baldwin

ENTRY ON PLAINTIFFS’ MOTION FOR PRELIMINARY INJUNCTION .

HAMILTON, District Judge.

Introduction

In Buckley v. Valeo, 424 U.S. 1, 96 S.Ct. 612, 46 L.Ed.2d 659 (1976), the Supreme Court held that the First Amendment imposes significant restrictions on the powers of state and federal government to regulate contributions and expenditures for political purposes. The Supreme Court drew a bright line in Buckley between what it called “express advocacy,” which is speech that uses express words to advocate the election or defeat of a clearly identified candidate for office, such as “vote for,” “elect,”…