Rep. David Lujan (D-AZ) was always fascinated by the legislative process and worked behind the scenes for years. In 2002 he was elected to the Phoenix Union School Board which began his career as a public servant. In 2004, Lujan decided to run for the state legislature.

Even though he had plenty of experience - former assistant attorney general, former legislature staffer, school board member - Lujan just wasn't sure he could pull together enough money to win.

He didn't have deep pockets or the Rolodex to raise the amount of money necessary to run a viable campaign. "I didn't have a lot of connections in terms of lobbyists and fundraising," he said.

Fortunately, in 1998, voters approved the Arizona Clean Elections Act - legislation that allows candidates to run for office without having to spend all of their time raising money from special interests and well-heeled donors. Under Clean Elections, candidates show community support by collecting a set number of $5 donations from within their district. Once qualified, candidates must adhere to strict spending limits and forgo all private fundraising.

"Clean Elections in Arizona definitely made it possible because I knew I would have the ability to raise the funds through Clean Elections that would put me on a competitive level with any of the other opponents," he said.

Lujan won in 2004 and is now in his second term at the legislature. In 2006, he was honored for his work on education with the Arizona Students Association's Legislator of the Year Award. He is also focused on children's health and safety issues.

And he doesn't have to worry about fundraising. As a Clean Elections participant, he's able to dedicate all of his time in office and on the campaign trail to working on the concerns and needs of his constituents and not dialing for dollars or attending high-dollar fundraising galas.

"If you're a traditionally funded candidate...you have to focus a lot of your time on fundraising and meeting with those people who are traditionally big donors to political campaigns, and those are lobbyists and other party activist types," Lujan said.

As a Clean Elections candidate, "you're out there meeting those who are going to put you in office-the voters, going door-to-door, trying to collect the $5 contributions, and you're meeting with your future constituents."

In fact, Lujan had to once spend an hour and a half to collect his $5 from a constituent.

During his first campaign for the legislature, Lujan was in his neighborhood knocking on doors. At one house, a woman answered the door and invited him in. She proceeded to pull up three chairs and the woman's elderly parents joined them. "They quizzed me for literally an hour and a half," he said.

In the end, as he was leaving, all three gave Lujan a $5 contribution. "It was the hardest I ever had to work for $5."

This is just one example of how Clean Elections allows constituents to really get to know their legislators because the only way they can qualify to receive the grant is by pounding the pavement and convincing people to hand over $5 to support their campaigns.

"I think it opens up the political process," he said. "I think [Clean Elections] changes the dynamics of the debate in your state on a whole variety of issues, and it brings in candidates that are going to have an opinion that are not going to be necessarily tied to special interests."

Aside from serving in the legislature, Lujan is the Staff Attorney for Defenders of Children, a non-profit organization providing legal and support services for children who are victims of abuse. Among other community activities, he volunteers his time with the Central High School mock trial team and is Chair of the Advisory Board for the Arizona Latino Leadership Institute.

Lujan won a third term last November, again running as a Clean Elections candidate and advocates for the system at the state and national level.

"People will ask if you are running Clean or traditional. So, it's sort of a badge of honor."

He currently serves as House Minority Leader in the 49th session of the Arizona state legislature.