Clean Elections coalition partners were among the first to respond to a lawsuit filed by an out-of-state special interest group in March against Secretary of State Betty Ireland.

The suit seeks to overturn West Virginias 2005 electioneering communication disclosure law (the "527" legislation), and asked Judge David Faber to issue an injunction preventing the laws enforcement during our current election cycle.

The law requires groups or individuals spending money on our elections to identify themselves and where their money comes from.

It forced us to move from the stealthy "And for the Sake of the Kids" to the more direct "Paid for by Don Blankenship."

OVEC, Citizen Action Group, the AFL-CIO, WV Education Association, the Council of Churches, three of the four Supreme Court candidates, and others signed onto a "friend of the court" brief from the Association for Justice seeking to keep the law in place.

We firmly believe that if groups intend to spend large amounts of money to influence West Virginia elections, the citizens have a right to know who the groups are and who provides the funding.

However, on April 22, Judge Faber granted the out-of-state groups request for an injunction providing "partial relief." Attorneys for the Association for Justice and the Supreme Court candidates believe that the decision will still require disclosure for any use of broadcast media, but will not require disclosure for e-mails, phone banks, etc.