Grants Database

Democracy Fund collaborates with our grantees, donors, and other partners to strengthen and expand the movement for an inclusive, multiracial democracy. We are proud to have supported more than 400 organizations doing this work.

Program Areas
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Elections and Voting
General and Field Building
Governance
Just and Inclusive Society
President's Office
Public Square
Strategies
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Civil & Human Rights Online
Constructive Politics
Digital Democracy
Ecosystem News
Empowering Congress
Engaged Journalism
Equitable Civic Infrastructure
General
Investigative Journalism
Journalism & Power Building
News & Information Ecosystems
Oversight and Accountability
Power Building in Marginalized Communities
Press Freedom
Preventing Authoritarian Abuse of Power
Previous Strategy
Pro-Voter Reform
Representative Institutions
Representative Leadership
Resilient Elections
Rights and Dignity
Roadmap for American Democracy
State and Local Accountability
Trust in Elections
Voter-Centric Election Administration
Voting Power
Organization Name (A-Z) Grant Amount Type Program Area Year
  • National Conference of State Legislatures
  • $350,000.00
  • Project
  • Elections and Voting
  • 2015

The National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) will define and explain existing funding structures used for running fair, efficient and accurate elections and will seek out additional funding concepts for comparison.

Project:

Elections 2020: Policy, Funding and the Future

Foundation Center Topic:

Campaigns, Elections, and Voting/Election Administration

Grant Length:

Aug 2015 to Oct 2017

Strategy:

Voter-Centric Election Administration
  • Former Members of Congress Inc.
  • $350,000.00
  • General Operating Support
  • Governance
  • 2017

General Operating Support

Project:

General Operating Support

Foundation Center Topic:

Government/Legislative Branch Performance, Civic Participation/Civic Education and Leadership

Grant Length:

Dec 2017 to Nov 2019

Strategy:

Empowering Congress
  • Public Agenda, Inc.
  • $350,000.00
  • Project
  • Public Square
  • 2014

As a partner to the Participatory Budgeting Project, Public Agenda will play a lead role in the development of participatory budgeting  through surfacing local evaluation research, performing independent research and communicating research results to key constituencies.

Project:

Participatory Budgeting Research

Foundation Center Topic:

Government/Budgeting, Civic Participation/Public Participation

Grant Length:

Dec 2014 to Dec 2016

Strategy:

Engaged Journalism
  • Participatory Budgeting Project Inc.
  • $350,000.00
  • Project
  • Public Square
  • 2014

Provide project support to the Participatory Budgeting Project to foster increased use of participatory budgeting in the US.

Project:

Advancing the Understanding of the Practice of Participatory Budgeting

Foundation Center Topic:

Government/Budgeting, Civic Participation/Public Participation

Grant Length:

May 2014 to May 2016

Strategy:

Previous Strategy
  • William J. Brennan, Jr. Center for Justice, Inc.
  • $350,000.00
  • Project
  • Governance
  • 2017

The William J. Brennan Center for Justice is preparing for the possible invocation of emergency authorities and the threat they would pose to democracy and to the constitutional order. This grant will support the Liberty and National Security Program’s Emergency Powers Project. The project involves legal and empirical research, a bipartisan working group of academic experts and former government officials to identify scenarios and interventions, and implementation of intervention strategies.

Project:

Liberty & National Security Program - Emergency Powers Project

Foundation Center Topic:

Government/Civil Liberties and Rule of Law

Grant Length:

Oct 2017 to Sep 2019

Strategy:

Oversight and Accountability
  • The Brookings Institution
  • $350,000.00
  • Project
  • Governance
  • 2019

To support the Brookings Institution’s work to track and analyze the actions being taken by members of the House of Representatives and its committees to conduct oversight of executive branch actions and policies in the 116th Congress through its House Oversight Tracker webpage. 

Project:

Brookings House Oversight Project

Foundation Center Topic:

Government/Executive Branch Performance, Government/Legislative Branch Performance

Grant Length:

Jul 2019 to Jun 2023

Strategy:

Oversight and Accountability
  • ThinkTennessee
  • $350,000.00
  • General Operating Support
  • Elections and Voting
  • 2019

To provide general support for ThinkTennessee’s work to build support for democracy reform in Tennessee. ThinkTN will provide unbiased research and analysis, informing key stakeholders about evidence-based ideas that will create civic and economic opportunity in Tennessee.

Project:

General Operating Support

Foundation Center Topic:

Campaigns, Elections, and Voting/Election Administration, Campaigns, Elections, and Voting/Voter Education, Registration, and Turnout, Civic Participation/Civic Education and Leadership

Grant Length:

May 2019 to Apr 2022

Strategy:

Pro-Voter Reform
  • Government Accountability Project Inc
  • $350,000.00
  • General Operating Support
  • Governance
  • 2022

Government Accountability Project’s mission is to promote corporate and government accountability by protecting whistleblowers, advancing occupational free speech, and empowering citizen activists.

Project:

General Operating Support

Foundation Center Topic:

Government/Open Government and Transparency

Grant Length:

Jun 2022 to May 2024

Strategy:

Oversight and Accountability
  • Millions of Conversations, Inc.
  • $350,000.00
  • General Operating Support
  • Just and Inclusive Society
  • 2022

Millions of Conversations is a movement to transcend divides and bring Americans together through common values to create a shared future. Using Truth & Reconciliation work, they challenge narratives that stigmatize our fellow Americans, disrupt intolerance before it takes root, and help heal communities so all Americans may experience a sense of belonging.

Project:

General Operating Support

Foundation Center Topic:

Civic Participation/Civic Education and Leadership, Civic Participation, Government/Civil Liberties and Rule of Law, Media, Civic Participation/Public Participation

Grant Length:

Dec 2022 to Nov 2024

Strategy:

Power Building in Marginalized Communities
  • Upturn, Inc.
  • $350,000.00
  • General Operating Support
  • Public Square
  • 2019

From the October 01, 2019 up to May 01, 2020, the Grant funds are restricted for the following purpose: To support Upturn’s research, publication, and coordination on the topic of discriminatory targeting by social media platform companies.
Any remaining funds from this Grant as of May 01, 2020 are hereby released from the project restriction outlined above and can be used for General Operating Support. 

Project:

Discriminatory Targeting Policy

Foundation Center Topic:

Media/Media Access and Policy

Grant Length:

Oct 2019 to Apr 2023

Strategy:

Digital Democracy
  • PEN American Center, Inc.
  • $350,000.00
  • Project
  • Public Square
  • 2019

To support PEN American’s programming to combat online harassment of journalists, which will include providing trainings for newsrooms and journalism membership associations to better equip both journalists and management on how to prepare and react to online attacks, as well as continued efforts to develop their publicly available Online Manual Field Guide, a crowdsource of resources and tools in the field to counter online abuse. 

Project:

Combatting Online Harassment

Foundation Center Topic:

Media/Journalism Education and Training

Grant Length:

Oct 2019 to Jun 2022

Strategy:

Press Freedom
  • Foundation for City College
  • $350,000.00
  • Project
  • President's Office
  • 2021

The Leadership Center for Democracy and Social Justice, a leadership development initiative housed within the City University of New York, provides training and resources to leaders of color working in the democracy reform and social justice sectors.

Project:

Leadership Center for Democracy and Social Justice Seed Grant

Foundation Center Topic:

Civic Participation/Civic Education and Leadership

Grant Length:

Dec 2021 to Nov 2023

Strategy:

General
  • New America Foundation
  • $375,000.00
  • Project
  • President's Office
  • 2022

Launched in 2014, New America’s Political Reform program seeks to develop new strategies and innovations to repair the dysfunction of government, restore civic trust, and realize the potential of American democracy.

Project:

Political Reform Project Renewal 2022

Foundation Center Topic:

Civic Participation/Civic Education and Leadership, Civic Participation, Government/Executive Branch Performance, Civic Participation/Public Participation, Campaigns, Elections, and Voting/Voting Access

Grant Length:

Aug 2022 to Jul 2025

Strategy:

General
  • Western States Center Inc.
  • $375,000.00
  • General Operating Support
  • Just and Inclusive Society
  • 2022

Western States Center works to build a future where all people can live, love, worship, and work free from bigotry and fear. They foster leaders, organizations, collaborations, and initiatives that reduce disparities and advance equity; lift up the leaders of marginalized communities; and deliver accessible tools for community organizing and civic engagement.

Project:

General Operating Support

Foundation Center Topic:

Government/Civil Liberties and Rule of Law, Other

Grant Length:

Jun 2022 to Apr 2024

Strategy:

General
  • Good Jobs First
  • $375,000.00
  • General Operating Support
  • Governance
  • 2020

Good Jobs First’s COVID Stimulus Watch database will aid government watchdogs, the media, and the general public in their understanding of where taxpayer’s dollars are flowing in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and how those funds are being used.

Project:

Covid Stimulus Watch

Foundation Center Topic:

Government/Open Government and Transparency

Grant Length:

Jul 2020 to Jun 2023

Strategy:

Oversight and Accountability
  • NEO Philanthropy Inc.
  • $375,000.00
  • Project
  • Just and Inclusive Society
  • 2022

Black Migrant Power Fund, a community-led fund housed at Neo Philanthropy Inc.’s Four Freedoms Fund, supports Black-led, grassroots organizations addressing the urgent needs of Black migrant communities and building power with and for Black migrants in the US.

Project:

Black Migrant Power Fund

Foundation Center Topic:

Civic Participation/Civic Education and Leadership, Civic Participation, Government/Civil Liberties and Rule of Law, Civic Participation/Issue-based Participation, Civic Participation/Naturalization and Immigrant Civic Integration

Grant Length:

Sep 2022 to Dec 2024

Strategy:

Power Building in Marginalized Communities
  • South Asian Americans Leading Together
  • $375,000.00
  • General Operating Support
  • Just and Inclusive Society
  • 2020

South Asian Americans Leading Together (SAALT) is a nation­al move­ment strat­e­gy and advo­ca­cy orga­ni­za­tion working to promote racial jus­tice through fed­er­al pol­i­cy and advo­ca­cy, local and nation­al part­ner­ships, coali­tion build­ing, and strate­gic com­mu­ni­ca­tions.

Project:

South Asian Americans Leading Together

Foundation Center Topic:

Civic Participation/Civic Education and Leadership, Civic Participation, Government/Civil Liberties and Rule of Law, Civic Participation/Naturalization and Immigrant Civic Integration, Civic Participation/Public Participation

Grant Length:

Sep 2020 to Aug 2023

Strategy:

General
  • New Georgia Project Incorporated
  • $375,000.00
  • General Operating Support
  • Elections and Voting
  • 2019

To provide general operating support for NGP.

Project:

General Operating Support

Foundation Center Topic:

Campaigns, Elections, and Voting/Voting Access

Grant Length:

Dec 2019 to Nov 2022

Strategy:

Pro-Voter Reform
  • Asylum Seeker Advocacy Project Inc
  • $375,000.00
  • General Operating Support
  • Just and Inclusive Society
  • 2023

The Asylum Seeker Advocacy Project (ASAP) believes that asylum seekers can make great change by standing together. They provide their membership of asylum seekers with legal and community support.

Project:

General Operating Support

Foundation Center Topic:

Civic Participation/Civic Education and Leadership, Civic Participation/Issue-based Participation, Civic Participation/Naturalization and Immigrant Civic Integration

Grant Length:

Nov 2023 to Oct 2026

Strategy:

Power Building in Marginalized Communities
  • New America Foundation
  • $388,367.00
  • Project
  • Public Square
  • 2012

The New America Foundation will work with scholars to conduct a series of lab and field experiments related to the effectiveness of fact checking and innovative uses of media to inform and engage the public.

Project:

Fact checking lab and research experiements

Foundation Center Topic:

Media/Journalism

Grant Length:

Jun 2012 to Sep 2013

Strategy:

Previous Strategy
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