Politinių partijų finansavimas: aktualijos ir problemos

Abstract

Democratic politics cannot proceed without financial resources. Political parties would be unable to organize themselves, politicians could not communicate with the public, and the election campaigns could not be held if money was not collected. Therefore political funding is not only indispensable, it is necessary. Over the past several years, party financing scandals have shaken countries in every region of the world. This has led to increased contempt for and public disillusionment with parties and politicians, and undermined the public’s confidence in the political process. There is no simple answer to how political finance should be organized, but there is much to be learned from current experiences in different parts of the world. The Western European democracies have emphasized distributive measures, especially cash subsidies to political parties and several countries in the region support fund-raising from individuals by tax incentives. The public money is provided almost without any obligations. Some countries, including Lithuania, have been very dependent on public funds which now have become the dominant source of income. Where regulations are limited it is because the privacy of parties and donors are emphasized.