On April 30, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court struck down a state campaign finance law. The case is DePaul v Commonwealth, 969 A 2d 536. The law made it illegal for anyone associated with the casino industry to contribute any money whatsoever to any candidate running for state office.

The significance of this decision is that the Court reiterates that the Pennsylvania Constitution provides greater protection for freedom of expression than the U.S. Constitution does. Page 546 of the decision summarizes past decisions that establish the greater protection from the Pennsylvania Constitution than from the U.S. Constitution. The Pennsylvania Constitution also provides that elections shall be “free and equal”. One hopes that the Pennsylvania Supreme Court bears these ideas in mind, as it considers the ballot access cases now pending in that Court.