April 8, 2006 - In advance of the 2006 elections, an untold number of advocacy groups will be spending millions of dollars with the hope of swaying your vote on Election Day. They will be running ads on TV and radio stations in your area, sending glossy flyers and pamphlets to your mailbox, calling you at home, and more.

These groups represent a variety of positions on a variety of issues, but they have one thing in common: They hope to influence the way you vote. Their activities may tell you to vote for or against a specific candidate, but often they will try to shape your opinion of a political candidate or party in the context of a specific issue. Such "issue advocacy" won't explicitly tell you to elect or defeat a particular candidate, but the advocacy group's support of (or opposition to) a candidate is clear.

What can you do to defend yourself from the onslaught of interest group spending?