Federal Election Commission v. Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee
454 U.S. 27 · Decided November 10, 1981 · Supreme Court of the United States
Record summary. This page is generated from the Supreme Court Database’s coded data about the case. It describes who decided what, not the Court’s reasoning. Read the opinion itself before relying on it. Not legal advice.
At a glance
Federal Election Commission v. Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee was decided on November 10, 1981 unanimously (9–0). The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice Byron R. White wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “Campaign spending” in the First Amendment area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 454 U.S. 27 · 102 S. Ct. 38 · 70 L. Ed. 2d 23 · 1981 U.S. LEXIS 142
- Docket number
- 80-939
- Decided
- November 10, 1981
- Argued
- October 6, 1981
- Court era
- Burger Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 9–0 (unanimous)
- Majority opinion
- Byron R. White
- Opinion assigned by
- Warren E. Burger
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- Campaign spending
- Issue area
- First Amendment
- Legal provision
- Federal Election Campaign Act
- Type of law
- Federal statute
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Justice William J. Brennan Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice Byron R. White | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Thurgood Marshall | Majority | |
| Chief Justice Warren E. Burger | Majority | |
| Justice Harry A. Blackmun | Majority | |
| Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. | Majority | |
| Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Concurrence | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Majority |
Full case caption
Federal Election Commission v. Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee et al.
SCDB identifiers: case 1981-004, docket 1981-004-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “Campaign spending”
- Citizens Against Rent Control/coalition for Fair Housing v. City of BerkeleyLaw held unconstitutional
- Bread Political Action Committee v. Federal Election Commission
- California Medical Association v. Federal Election Commission
- Brown v. Socialist Workers '74 Campaign CommitteeLaw held unconstitutional
- Federal Election Commission v. National Right to Work Committee
- Federal Election Commission v. National Conservative Political Action CommitteeLaw held unconstitutional
Cases on the same legal provision: Federal Election Campaign Act
Same Term, same area (First Amendment)
- California ex Rel. Cooper v. Mitchell Brothers' Santa Ana Theater
- Widmar v. Vincent
- Citizens Against Rent Control/coalition for Fair Housing v. City of BerkeleyLaw held unconstitutional
- United States v. Lee
- Village of Hoffman Estates v. the Flipside
- Bread Political Action Committee v. Federal Election Commission
Source: Supreme Court Database, 2026 Release 01 (data file dated September 8, 2026). Imported into CaseTrail November 5, 2026. Coverage: decisions from the 1946 through 2025 Terms. Methodology · Report an error