ELECT Act Terminates Presidential Campaign Public Funding: Tax Check-Off Ends After 2024

The “Eliminating Leftover Expenses for Campaigns from Taxpayers (ELECT) Act of 2025” is straightforward: it completely shuts down the decades-old system of public financing for presidential campaigns. This isn't about cutting a massive government program, but rather ending the voluntary mechanism where taxpayers can designate a portion of their income tax payment to the Presidential Election Campaign Fund (PECF).

Starting with the 2025 tax year (the one you file in 2026), that little box you can check on your 1040 form to send a few bucks to the presidential campaign fund will be gone, according to Section 2 of the bill. It’s a clean break, as the bill terminates the entire public financing structure. This includes both the main PECF (Chapter 95) used for general elections and the Presidential Primary Matching Payment Account (Chapter 96) used to help candidates in the early stages.

The End of the Check-Box Campaign Fund

For most people, the biggest visible change is just the removal of that check box on the tax form. While the designation was voluntary and didn't change your tax liability, it was the engine that powered the public financing system. By eliminating the ability for taxpayers to voluntarily designate funds after December 31, 2024, the bill effectively starves the fund of new revenue. Any money left in the PECF when the law takes effect will be transferred directly to the Treasury to reduce the national debt, which is one of the bill’s stated fiscal benefits.

Who Feels the Pinch?

This legislation matters because it fundamentally changes how presidential campaigns are funded. The public financing system was designed to give candidates an alternative to relying solely on large private donations, often imposing spending limits in exchange for the public funds. By taking the public funding option off the table, the ELECT Act pushes all presidential candidates—whether they are challenging an incumbent or running for the first time—to rely entirely on private fundraising.

This shift could significantly increase the power of big-money donors and organized special interests. For a candidate who isn't already famous or wealthy, the public matching funds system was a lifeline, helping them gain visibility and compete with better-funded rivals. Without it, the barrier to entry for smaller parties or less-established candidates gets even higher. Essentially, if you want to run for President, you’ll have to raise every single dollar privately, which means spending more time dialing for dollars and less time connecting with voters.

The Real-World Impact on Elections

Think of it this way: the public financing system acted like a small-business loan for political campaigns, offering a chance for candidates to get their message out without being immediately beholden to corporate PACs or billionaires. Eliminating this system, as detailed in Section 2, means that candidates who can’t tap into massive private donor networks early on face an even steeper uphill climb. While the bill achieves its goal of ending taxpayer involvement in campaign funding, the trade-off is likely an increased reliance on high-dollar private funding, potentially leading to less transparent and more expensive elections overall.