A state commission said Monday it will not ask a federal judge to clarify her ruling invalidating a key portion of Arizona's public campaign finance system — a setback for Republican Gov. Jan Brewer, who is being outspent by a wealthy opponent.

Without additional campaign cash to fend off better-funded opponents, some Clean Elections candidates will be in dire need of help from their allies.

The US Supreme Court's matching funds ruling will impact just about every state race. Here's how.

Arizona’s matching funds system for publicly financed campaigns may be going down, but it probably won’t go alone.

The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to block Arizona’s Clean Elections system from distributing matching funds is a bad omen for similar systems in other states, and could portend their end if the court rules that matching funds are unconstitutional, according to legal experts and campaign finance reform advocates.

Arizona's Clean Elections system provides an initial disbursement of varying amounts to candidates to choose to run with public financing. The amount of the disbursement depends on whether the candidate is running for a legislative seat, or an executive position such as governor, attorney general, secretary of state, etc.

The U.S. Supreme Court blocked Arizona's Clean Elections system from distributing matching funds, throwing a number of high profile campaigns into disarray just weeks before candidates were to start receiving money.

While much of the attention has been focused on the gubernatorial race since a federal court upheld matching funds, another candidate for a statewide race also is likely to benefit from the opinion — Sen. Barbara Leff of Paradise Valley.

The U.S. Supreme Court denied the Goldwater Institute's request to block matching funds for the 2010 election, but left open the possibility that it may still do so.

A former lawmaker whose single term in office was marred by allegations that he faked a Naval Reserve deployment to the war-torn Balkans has qualified for the ballot in the governor’s race.