Tuition at the University of Virginia may go up substantially, depending on the results of November’s election.

A group of wealthy, out-of-state University of Virginia alumni who want to pack the university’s board with like-minded individuals and jack up tuition prices have persuaded Democratic gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe to support their cause.

All it took was a $50,000 check.

Jeffrey Walker, a New York financier and UVA alum who believes the university should be more expensive and elite, has been trying to recruit other wealthy alumni to his cause, which would involve a restructuring of UVA’s governing board. The board is currently appointed by the state governor, but Walker and his friends want influential alumni–like themselves–to play a role in choosing candidates for 8 of the 17 slots.

Walker’s group envisions UVA as a more exclusive institution–and one the would necessitate higher tuition costs for Virginia students and their families.

Three months ago, Walker spoke with McAuliffe about his ideas. He also wrote the campaign two separate checks for $25,000. This was enough to buy McAuliffe’s support, and the Democratic candidate quickly revised his stated higher education policy on his website to align with Walker’s views, according to a recent investigation by The Washington Post.

The campaign added “ensuring proper representation on governing boards,” to a list of McAuliffe’s higher education policies.

“The Governor should solicit and respect slates of nominees from college and university communities when filling board slots,” according to the web site revisions.

These actions were perfectly legal, as the state of Virginia allows unlimited campaign contributions. Still, McAuliffe’s opponent, Republican Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, criticized both the ease with which McAuliffe was bought and the policy itself.