Washington, D.C. - While politicians in Washington ponder the effects of the new McCain-Feingold campaign finance law, far more comprehensive Clean Elections systems of full public financing got a full-bore test this year in Arizona and Maine and passed with flying colors.

Unofficial returns indicate that the next Governor of Arizona will be Democrat Janet Napolitano, who is leading Republican Matt Salmon 47%-44% with 7% going to a third independent candidate. The final result won't be known until tens of thousands of early ballots are tallied, but assuming established trends hold up, Napolitano will become the first governor elected anywhere running "clean." To do so, Napolitano had to collect more than 4,000 $5 qualifying contributions from registered voters, while agreeing to abide by strict spending limits and to raise no private money (except for a very modest amount of limited seed money). In return, she financed her race with $2.3 million in Clean Money public funding.

In addition, at least six other statewide officers in Arizona, including the attorney general, secretary of state, state treasurer, mine inspector and at least two of three members of the state corporations commission up for election will be candidates who ran "clean."

State legislatures in both Arizona and Maine, which also has a Clean Elections system, will also be full of representatives free of direct dependence on private donors. Nearly three-quarters (26 out of 35) of the Maine state senate will be held by candidates who ran "clean," an increase of 9 from 2000. In the state assembly, "clean" candidates won 57% (69 out of 122) of the seats so far, with 29 assembly races still too close to call. In Arizona, at least 32 out of 90 members (36%) of the legislature will be "clean," more than double the number in 2000.

"The people of Arizona and Maine should feel proud today," said Nick Nyhart, executive director of Public Campaign. "While big money set new records everywhere else, in these two states, scores of clean candidates were elected without owing any favors to private special interest contributors. I especially want to congratulate the statewide winners in Arizona, including the likely Governor-elect Napolitano, all of whom took a leap of faith in running under this relatively new system and showed not only that it worked, but that it was the better way to run."

After maiden runs in 2000 with lower levels of candidate participation, Clean Elections in Maine and Arizona were embraced by candidates and voters in the 2002 elections and passed with flying colors:

• Six of ten candidates in Maine and half in Arizona ran "clean" in the general election, about double the rate in 2000.

• Participation cut across party lines, with 71% of Democratic candidates and 54% of Republicans running "clean" in Maine and 64% of Democrats and 34% of Republicans running "clean" in Arizona.

• The total number of candidates running increased significantly compared to the last off-year election in 1998, and Maine in particular saw a 72% increase in contested primaries. In Arizona, contested primaries increased 30% in the senate while dropping one-third in the house

• In both states, the number of women running for office rose about 10% over 1998, and women were considerably more likely than men to opt for Clean Elections financing (a reflection perhaps of the difficulties women still face raising campaign funds from traditional sources).

• In Arizona, overall participation by Latino, African-American, Native American and Asian candidates jumped substantially. In 2000, there were 13 such candidates in the primaries (10 of whom ran "clean"). This year, there were 37 minority candidates, 21 of whom ran "clean." Gay rights groups also reported an increase in openly gay candidates, crediting Clean Elections for their involvement.

• Sixty-four percent of Arizonans expressed support for their state's system of Clean Elections, in a recent poll taken by the Arizona Republic.

For more information, contact Rick Bielke at Public Campaign, 202-293-0222. In Arizona, call Cecilia Martinez, Arizona Clean Elections Institute, 602-462-1113. In Maine, call Doug Clopp, Maine Citizen Leadership Fund, 207-780-8657 x 5.