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How All by April Improved 2024 Election Funding — and How Nonprofits Say Philanthropy Can Go Further

April 24, 2025
All by April

In early 2024, Democracy Fund launched the successful All by April campaign, urging funders to make nonpartisan election-related grants by the end of April. We did this to respond to elections and voting nonprofits who have long said that election-year grants arrive too little, too late. The campaign mobilized at least $155 million in election-related support, with nearly 200 signers joining us. Participants pledged to make earlier 501(c)(3) nonpartisan election-related grants, and often in higher amounts. Many also committed to simplifying grant processes, and encouraged others to do the same.

When we surveyed participating funders in late 2024, we found meaningful shifts in philanthropic practices. This year, to build on our understanding of the campaign’s impact, we worked with the Center for Effective Philanthropy to survey 251 elections and voting nonprofits who received philanthropic funding in 2024. While the survey included some organizations who had directly engaged with the All by April campaign, our goal was to capture a broad picture of how the nonprofit sector experienced funding during the 2024 election cycle.

The survey results show that All by April had a strong impact. We learned that many nonprofits received higher levels of funding in early 2024, and experienced more streamlined grant processes and more flexible funding than in prior years.

However, the survey also identified serious challenges in the field, including funding shortfalls and the need for even earlier funds. The overall message we’re taking away: keep your foot on the gas. It’s working, but philanthropy must push harder and do more.

Here’s a deeper dive into some of the things we learned:

1. Nearly half of the nonprofits surveyed reported higher levels of funding during the first four months of 2024 than in previous election years.

We were encouraged to learn that survey respondents reported receiving greater levels of funding during the first four months of 2024, compared to 2022.

A pie chart compares the 45 percent of organizations that answered “yes, we saw an increase in early funding” to the 50 percent that answered “no, we did not see an increase in early funding” along with much lower percentages answering, “don’t know” or “not applicable.” Source: Center for Effective Philanthropy survey of 501(c)3 nonprofit experiences with funding for election-related work in 2024. Survey of nonprofits conducted January-February 2025.

These rates were even higher for nonprofits identified as partners of All by April (67%) and intermediaries (58%).

A horizontal bar chart shows that 67 percent of the organizations that directly engaged with the campaign reported greater levels of early funding, compared to 42 percent that reported such an increase without directly engaging in the campaign. Source: Center for Effective Philanthropy survey of 501(c)3 nonprofit experiences with funding for election-related work in 2024. Survey of nonprofits conducted January-February 2025.

When we looked at a comparison to the 2020 election cycle, we found very similar numbers to what survey respondents reported for 2022.

It’s possible that organizations that engaged with All by April may have received more funding because they learned about the campaign early and could build it into their fundraising practices for the year. Some qualitative responses from groups that didn’t engage with the campaign indicated that they were caught off-guard by the early opportunity to fundraise and struggled to adjust their fundraising timeline.

“We were grateful for the significant impact of All by April as we saw numerous of our current and prospective funders signing on to the pledge. It influenced several of our existing funders to expedite funding processes, and created opportunities for outreach to other democracy funders that we saw were aligned with our priorities and values.”

 — Survey Respondent

“It was an open invitation to see which funders care about democracy. We were able to leverage that list and build new relationships which was great to increase funding and we did raise new dollars.”

 — Survey Respondent

We were also encouraged to find that more than a third of respondents experienced more streamlined grant processes (like faster disbursement of funds or simplified administrative requirements) over the same timeline, and more than a quarter received more flexible funding (like unrestricted or general operating support).

A pie chart compares the 32 percent of organizations that answered “yes, we saw an increase in streamlined grant processes” to the 62 percent that answered, “no we did not see more streamlined processes” along with much lower percentages answering, “don’t know” or “not applicable.” Source: Center for Effective Philanthropy survey of 501(c)3 nonprofit experiences with funding for election-related work in 2024. Survey of nonprofits conducted January-February 2025.

A pie chart compares the 32 percent of organizations that answered “yes, we saw an increase in flexible funding” to the 62 percent that answered, “no we did not see more flexible funding” along with much lower percentages answering, “don’t know” or “not applicable.” Source: Center for Effective Philanthropy survey of 501(c)3 nonprofit experiences with funding for election-related work in 2024. Survey of nonprofits conducted January-February 2025.

The All by April campaign actively encouraged funders to adopt these practices. In our 2024 participating funders survey, we found that 62% of direct grantmakers were motivated to change their funding behavior in 2024. We also found that 55% of direct grantmakers reported that their behavior changes included changing their grantmaking policies or ways of working to support the goal of earlier giving.

“Wonderful! Rapid and flexible funding freed up earlier gave organizations breathing room for strategically planned work that is sustainable with team capacity considered for the long haul.”

 — Survey Respondent

2. Nonprofits reported that receiving election-related funding by April is crucial — but they can do more if it’s even earlier.

A majority (75%) of survey respondents indicated that their organizations engage in election-related work that is dependent on earlier funding — like hiring staff, training staff and volunteers, planning, and carrying out programmatic work. 

A pie chart compares the 75 percent of organizations that answered “yes, our work requires early funding” to the 25 percent that answered, “no, our work does not require early funding.” Source: Center for Effective Philanthropy survey of 501(c)3 nonprofit experiences with funding for election-related work in 2024. Survey of nonprofits conducted January-February 2025.

As a result of receiving earlier funding in 2024, 42% of survey respondents – and a higher proportion of organizations with budgets less than $1 million or those with a grassroots focus – engaged in different or expanded election-related work.

As expected, many survey respondents (43%) would prefer to receive election-related funding commitments before January of an election year. While some funding cycles may not be conducive to making grants before January, a commitment that the funds are coming can be fundamental for organizational planning.

An additional 39% of respondents reported that they would prefer to receive commitments during the first four months of the election year. Of the 12% that prefer to receive commitments by a specific month, June and July were the most commonly mentioned months.

A pie chart compares the 43 percent of organizations that prefer funding commitments prior to January of the election year and the 39 percent of organizations that prefer such commitments in the first four months of the election year to the 12 percent who prefer a particular month and 6 percent who prefer no particular date. Source: Center for Effective Philanthropy survey of 501(c)3 nonprofit experiences with funding for election-related work in 2024. Survey of nonprofits conducted January-February 2025.

“By receiving funds earlier, we are able to hire and train the staff necessary to conduct our programmatic efforts. When we are not able to do that, capacity issues arise. Current staff feel the burden of additional work needing to get done without the staff needed to do it. This affects the overall success of programmatic efforts and also morale.”

 — Survey Respondent

“Early funds mean we can actually begin to do what we’ve planned on time. We can start hiring for the temporary positions that provide the added capacity we need during election years. If those folks aren’t onboarded by the end of the previous year, they aren’t there, ready to launch programs and recruiting when it needs to happen at the start of the year. We and our partners also aren’t able to make firm commitments to coalition plans if we aren’t fairly certain we’ll have the funds – and consequently the capacity – to follow through. Everything actually happening depends on getting funding, and not getting it early enough causes a cascading effect of pushing deadlines, paring down plans, and cutting losses.”

— Survey Respondent

3. Most nonprofits did not receive enough early funding to plan election-related work through the rest of the year.

Overall, nearly 75% of survey respondents reported that by April 2024, their nonprofits did not have the necessary funding to plan for the needs of their election-related work through the rest of the year.

A pie chart compares the 74 percent of organizations that answered “no, we did not have the necessary funding by April” to the 26 percent of organizations that answered “yes, they did have enough funding” by that same time. Source: Center for Effective Philanthropy survey of 501(c)3 nonprofit experiences with funding for election-related work in 2024. Survey of nonprofits conducted January-February 2025.

However, this number was significantly improved among nonprofits that had directly engaged with the All by April campaign. Only 50% reported that they lacked the funding they needed to plan for their election-related work through the rest of the year, including staffing and infrastructure.

A horizontal bar chart shows that 50 percent of organizations that directly engaged with the campaign responded “yes, we had necessary funding by April,” compared to 23 percent of organizations that provided the same answer, but did not engage directly with the campaign. Source: Center for Effective Philanthropy survey of 501(c)3 nonprofit experiences with funding for election-related work in 2024. Survey of nonprofits conducted January-February 2025.

Half of these survey respondents who did not have sufficient funding indicated that by April 2024, their organizations had a shortfall of 50% or more. Still, 43% of these organizations indicated that they were able to raise the necessary funds later in the year.

This aligns with what funders signing the All by April pledge reported in our survey last spring. Even with an increase in early giving, 41% of funders indicated that they would continue giving about the same amount in the post-April period as they would in a normal election year (and 2% would give more).

That said, there were a lot of organizations who were unable to catch up after reporting a budget shortfall in April. Of those reporting insufficient early funds, 57% were not able to raise the remaining funds by the end of the year. One survey respondent noted that 2024 was “a difficult fundraising year for our organization,” and another described the period as “the toughest election cycle in my twenty years of raising money for election work.”

While the All by April campaign demonstrated that earlier funding commitments can have a notable impact on budgets, the issue is much bigger than timing. Organizations don’t just need earlier funds, they need more funds. Philanthropy must work to close the budget gaps that organizations are experiencing.

Philanthropy must get dollars out earlier, and in greater amounts.

Democracy Fund’s recent survey of democracy funders indicated that nearly 4 in 10 (39%) plan to revisit their long-term strategies in 2025. This is an opportunity to adapt philanthropic strategies to include practices that empower the elections and voting field by:

  • Increasing election-related giving;
  • Planning earlier grantmaking in election years; and,
  • Creating grantmaking processes that are a lighter lift for grantees.

At Democracy Fund, we’re committed to getting our 2026 election and voting grants made as early as possible. The target month of April was a good start, but we can do better. More to come on this soon.

As we plan for the next election cycle, we’re continuing to look for ways to make our grantmaking processes a lighter lift for grantees. Things like streamlining the grant application process, and offering simpler reporting methods can really help. We’re working on some shifts internally, and we encourage our peers to explore options like these as well.

Lastly, we’re supporting the Courage Calls Us Campaign. This campaign is answering the call for increased funding by pushing for an initial investment of $20M across the field to fund streamlined responses to today’s most urgent challenges. Please reach out if you have any questions — we’d be happy to discuss.

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Authoritarian Attacks on Philanthropy are Coming. Here’s How We Can Stand Strong for Our Grantee Partners.

Joe Goldman
/
April 10, 2025

These are scary times — by design. Authoritarians are using a deliberate strategy meant to instill fear, suppress dissent, and fracture civil society.

We know attacks on philanthropy are coming. But attacks on frontline nonprofit organizations are already here. The organizations that we and many other funders support are already weathering an intense storm — divisive political rhetoric, financial uncertainty, deep burnout among staff, and bad faith attacks from actors seeking not to ensure the sector performs as it should but to weaken it.

As funders, we must stand with our grantee partners — our actions can help support their services, protect their leaders, and defend their voices. We must also prepare and unite as funders. When authoritarian attacks come, we must respond with courage, not fear. Here are some of the actions we’re focused on, right now.

1. Keep Resources Flowing

We all depend on nonprofit organizations. From medical research to sports leagues, and from food pantries to business associations, nonprofits touch all of our lives.

Some foundations are already deepening their support for grantees in these challenging times — releasing unnecessary requirements, increasing payouts, supporting safety, security, wellness, and more. Others are understandably worried and wondering how best to show up in this moment. We must choose the “easy courage” of resourcing grantees more and better as they do the courageous work of supporting everyday people in communities.

This year, Democracy Fund has mobilized around frontline organizations’ most urgent needs in the field. Stay tuned for updates on how funders can continue to answer the call from nonprofits doing the work on the ground.

2. Support Grantees When They Face Unfair Scrutiny or Attack

We’ve seen powerful institutions like Columbia and Harvard University, and top law firms targeted, and many have not withstood the pressure. But some have, and there are signs it is working, at least in the short-term. Nonprofits are far more vulnerable, and it is philanthropy’s responsibility to have their backs.

At Democracy Fund, we respect the autonomy and judgment of the organizations we fund, and we work hard to ensure our due diligence from a legal, compliance, and programmatic perspective.

As an organization, we will not stray from our mission or shy away from support of grantees just because they have come under unfair pressure and scrutiny — especially as it relates to our commitment to racial justice. We will pay particular attention to the safety, security, and well-being of our grantees.

We urge our partners to not make the work of those unjustly attacking our sector easier. Do not abandon commitments to justice. Do not encourage grantees to censor themselves. Do not retreat — in words, actions, or dollars.

3. Stand Together as Funders

Democracy Fund just signed onto a public solidarity statement, affirming that we stand with our peer funders and the communities we serve. We encourage others to stand with us now, not later.

Solidarity does not mean that we are not concerned for our own self-interest. Rather, we act in solidarity when we recognize that our own interests lie with those of others. Authoritarians depend on us isolating ourselves out of a sense of self protection. We must reach across divides and stand with one another. This is how we’ll expand our coalition and deepen our partnerships.

Moving Forward With Courage

We at Democracy Fund recommit to the pledge we made at the beginning of the year. We want to reiterate our commitment to an America where all people belong, thrive, feel safe, and have their voices heard.

We will be continuing to seek out ways to move forward together courageously, and we hope you’ll join us.

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A Pledge to Get Through This Together

Joe Goldman
/
January 17, 2025

Inside Philanthropy’s choice to recognize the success of last year’s All by April campaign by naming me “Foundation Leader of the Year” was a surprising and humbling way to close out 2024. I’m grateful for their recognition of the work that Democracy Fund and our partners have engaged in to stand up for our grantees as we work together to create a more inclusive, multiracial democracy.

Unfortunately, many of us are starting 2025 with heavy hearts. The devastating fires in Los Angeles have demonstrated how vulnerable we all are to the impacts of climate change. Our hearts go out to all who have been touched by the disaster (if you’re able, please consider supporting the LA Unity and Solidarity Fund to help those in need). Meanwhile, here in Washington and across the country, many are fearful about what the next four years will bring. Whether you are the parent of a trans youth, the spouse of a federal employee, or a member of an immigrant family, the policies coming from the new administration are likely to impact countless Americans in ways we do not yet know.

No one can foresee exactly what the coming months will bring for our country. What we know for certain is that this is not a time to retreat from our core commitments or from each other. It is clear that community and perseverance are what will get us through the coming trials. Isolation and resignation will do nothing but ensure our failure.

I’ve spent a good deal of time over these past few weeks thinking about what it means to lead in this moment and how to translate our organizational values into action. The principles below reflect the posture Democracy Fund will embody as we head into the new year:

  • Choose hope. We will find courage to stand up for our core values and beliefs rather than retreating out of fear.
  • Stick together. We will nurture community, resist isolation, and forge relationships across differences to expand our coalition and deepen our partnerships.
  • Practice solidarity. We will use our position, influence, and resources to defend those who are most vulnerable and stand with those whose rights and dignity are under attack.
  • Seek opportunity. We will seek out opportunities for transformative change in the midst of instability and disruption.
  • Remain humble. We will question our assumptions about how we got here and how to achieve meaningful change. Even under pressure, we will maintain a posture of curiosity.
  • Bolster resilience. We will rest, practice self care, and find ways to step forward when others need to step back. We will celebrate moments of joy, progress, and beauty.
  • Live our values. We will reject violence, not dehumanize opponents, and stand by the principles of an inclusive democracy.

Practically, it will take time to know all the ways that these principles will be put into practice. But there are four commitments that I can make today:

  1. Democracy Fund and our 501c4 partner Democracy Fund Voice will not stray from our respective organizational strategies. Nor will we reduce our budgets just because it is no longer a presidential election year. We will not turn our backs on our grantees and will pay particular attention to their safety, security, and emotional well-being.
  2. We will work with our peers to flatten the boom and bust cycle of election giving that has so often characterized philanthropic practices. Our team will make extra effort to strengthen and broaden our relationships with leaders across the field and peers across philanthropy.
  3. We will not shy away from support of grantees who come under unfair pressure and scrutiny – especially as it relates to our commitment to racial justice, just as we refused to abandon our support of BAMEMSA communities this past year.
  4. We will advocate for the kind of democracy we deserve and not defend the status quo. Too often in seeking to stand up for our democracy, the pro-democracy community has found itself in the position of defending broken, unpopular institutions – leaving some in the public to believe that we do not see the many ways our political system is failing them. We need to give people something to aspire to.

I very much hope that the leaders of our country will live up to their pledges to strengthen our nation. I share the goals of reducing corruption in Washington and making our political system work for the American people. Voters have clearly communicated that they are unhappy with the direction our country is going, and I for one agree that there is plenty broken that must be fixed.

I fear, however, that our nation’s leaders will misread their mandate, focusing their attention on the priorities of a narrow base rather than the public good. I fear that power will be abused and fundamental rights infringed upon. If this comes to pass, it is incumbent upon civil society to hold our government accountable and ensure that the American people see how their neighbors and fellow community members are being harmed.

If the past is a guide for the future, it is safe to say that the coming months will bring many unexpected twists and turns. Those who speak confidently about what will happen next should be viewed with suspicion. As we head into these uncharted waters, I pledge to hold to Democracy Fund’s core values and continue to support our grantees as we work towards a better tomorrow.

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5 Things I’ve Learned In 10 Years of Leading Democracy Fund and Democracy Fund Voice

Joe Goldman
/
December 16, 2024

I want to end the year on a note of gratitude and pride for the many ways our community came together to defend and advance a democracy that is open, just, resilient, and trustworthy for all Americans. While I am clear-eyed about the threats facing us and the hard work ahead, I remain determined to stand up for our democracy in these challenging times.

This year, Democracy Fund celebrated its tenth anniversary as an independent grantmaking foundation. Along with our partner organization, Democracy Fund Voice, we have made more than $425 million in grants to promote free elections, a just society, an equitable public square, and accountable government institutions. I would be remiss to end the year without expressing my deep gratitude to all the grantees, partners, and staff that have helped to build this remarkable institution and community of fierce democracy advocates.

This decade has profoundly shaped our democracy, our organization, and my growth as a leader. My understanding of philanthropy’s role in empowering change has evolved along the way. In the face of rising threats to our democracy, I am sharing five lessons I’ve learned, hoping they’ll be valuable to others in the field.

1. Funders can’t shy away from tough conversations — or bold action — in defense of our values.

Many in the philanthropic field are worried about the rising critiques against progressive philanthropy and the emerging threats against the causes and communities many of us hold dear — from immigration, to the LGBTQ+ community, racial justice and DEI, and so many more.

Democracy Fund and Democracy Fund Voice stand strong in our commitment to an inclusive, multiracial democracy. We will not back down. Our work is part of a long tradition of fighting for a democracy that truly represents and serves all Americans — a democracy that we have never yet achieved.

It took a lot of learning on our part to get to where we are today. Ten years ago, Democracy Fund and Democracy Fund Voice started with a bipartisan approach, and an incremental and reformist mindset. We thought that broader political buy-in to reforms would be key to improving resilience over time. But that’s not what happened.

We soon realized that we would need to fundamentally revisit our thinking if we wanted to continue to live within our values. We wrestled through a series of tough conversations that resulted in us “declaring independence” from bipartisanship and creating a new organizational framework in 2021. The process of articulating a more explicit set of core values and a bolder perspective on the fundamental inequities of our democracy transformed our strategy, our staff, our organizational culture, and our position in the field.

I am proud we did not shy away from asking ourselves difficult questions about who we were and what it would take to pursue impact as the world changed around us. Doing this work provided us with a clear rallying point around which to stand boldly in defense of our values and our grantees.

As our sector faces new and emerging challenges today, we have revisited this experience and are in the process of articulating a set of principles to guide our posture moving forward. I encourage our philanthropic peers to face this moment with deep introspection and determination – and a willingness to let go of the familiar where necessary to make transformative change.

2. How we fund matters — and it’s up to us to give better.

Our grantees’ feedback has consistently been a source of essential learning – and it has not always been easy to hear. I still remember a 2014 grantee assessment that compared Democracy Fund’s grants diligence process to a particularly uncomfortable doctor’s visit.

Listening to our grantees and learning from our partners, we have increasingly shifted our grants application and reporting processes to be less onerous for grantees. We have significantly increased the proportion of our grants that are larger, multiyear, and unrestricted. By implementing new processes such as verbal reporting, we’ve shifted much of the diligence and reporting burden onto our own shoulders. We’ve become better and more supportive grantmakers, and are gratified in these efforts by improved grantee trust.

In recent years, we have embraced opportunities to share these lessons with others. During the COVID-19 pandemic and the racial justice uprisings of 2020, we joined with peer funders in streamlining processes to better support grantees. In 2024, we launched the All by April campaign to encourage philanthropy to release nonpartisan election-related grant dollars earlier in the year. The campaign mobilized more than $155 million in earlier grants and accelerated payments to pro-democracy organizations when they needed it most.

There is much more that can be done. In particular, democracy funders must break the cyclical nature of elections funding, which causes grantees to dismantle and rebuild operations every 2-4 years. We need to provide organizations focused on the slow and necessary work of structural reform and deep community organizing the multi-year grants that can sustain them. Philanthropy’s commitment to democracy must be sustainable and sustained. We must keep our foot on the gas and ensure our field partners know that we have their backs.

3. The philanthropic sector needs to grow — and organize.

In the aftermath of the 2016 election, I spent significant time on the phone with peer donors and new philanthropists who were eager to learn from Democracy Fund and Democracy Fund Voice on how to direct new dollars into the democracy space. With deep subject matter expertise and relationships – as well as the greater capacity to share these with peers given our staffing model – my staff were particularly well positioned to advise new donors in strategy development and to work with the field on ambitious field cultivation efforts. Since then, donor organizing has grown to be a central pillar of our strategy.

Grantees are the best champions of their own work and their strategic direction must always be at the center of our work. However, we’ve learned that funder-to-funder relationships can create a safe place for shared learning and encourage new donors to take meaningful steps toward funding. And, only we can address the broken sector incentives — such as the confusing proliferation of intermediary groups in the elections space – that create inefficiencies and complicate the nonprofit sector’s ability to operate effectively.

Over the years, we have helped spearhead joint funding initiatives like Press Forward, which will invest more than $500 million into local news and information over the next five years, and which reflects an aligned and unified vision among field and philanthropy alike of the change needed in this sector.

In 2025 and beyond, Democracy Fund is committed to both continuing our efforts to increase the size of the overall democracy philanthropy space and to supporting our funder community to be better.

4. We must cultivate our capacity to look ahead.

Our sector was unprepared for the election results of 2016 and for the political violence of January 6th, 2021 – but our position in 2024 is profoundly different. Over the past several years, funders and field actors have invested significant resources developing the skills and capacity to imagine multiple futures and engage in scenario planning. These skills have not only laid the groundwork for contingency plans, they have increased our collective dexterity amid uncertainty, allowing us to now step resolutely into a rapidly changing world.

We are proud of our work helping to establish the Trusted Elections Fund as a hub for election crisis planning and response and of having supported the work of countless grantees like Democracy Forward who have built robust plans to respond to the antidemocratic agenda of Project 2025 and other threats. These plans and infrastructure are now ready to be deployed — and philanthropy must be ready to support them.

We must remember these examples as we feel our attention being pulled into the urgent threats ahead. Funders must act swiftly to defend our democracy, our grantees, and the communities that will face threats. And, we cannot allow ourselves to be distracted from the longer-term work that will be critical to our success. It is essential that philanthropy enable the necessary work of envisioning a democracy agenda that can recapture the imagination of the American people and do the long-term work of building community power to achieve that vision.

5. Philanthropy is deeply flawed – and uniquely important in our democracy.

In the past decade, sector leaders like Rob Reich and Edgar Villanueva have led important conversations about the structural flaws and injustices in our field. As a result, philanthropy has gotten more skilled at recognizing and combating the power dynamics inherent in our very existence.

This shift has been profoundly important to me as a leader — and also enabled me to get sharper in articulating why I believe that philanthropy has a significant and legitimate role to play in our democracy. Philanthropy’s unique ability to deploy flexible, risk-tolerant capital makes it a critical catalyst for innovation and rapid response, bridging gaps left by slower government action and profit-focused private industry.

For example, during the COVID-19 pandemic, our community played a key role in supporting a safe and secure 2020 election. Through increased democracy-focused giving, our grantees provided crucial technical assistance and education to local election administrators adopting mail-in voting, implemented health protocols at polling centers, and recruited thousands of much-needed poll workers. While the government focused on vaccine development and rollout, philanthropic support empowered hundreds of nonprofits to help the nation’s democratic practice meet this important challenge.

As our nation faces profound threats to our democracy, it is also important to note that civil society – and the private philanthropy that has supported it – has continuously been at the forefront of protecting and advancing democracy and has a critical role to play going forward. From the nineteenth century fundraising societies that supported the Underground Railroad to the Ford Foundation’s crucial role in supporting the advancement of racial equity in the Civil Rights Movement, philanthropists have served as a counterweight to illiberalism and authoritarianism in our country.

With this history in mind, in this moment philanthropy must protect the civic space in which organizations and leaders can speak, operate, and organize, ensure free and fair elections, and advance the democratic values we hold dear. Even as our own sector may come under scrutiny, we must be prepared to vociferously defend our grantees and our vision for the future.

Looking to 2025

As we look ahead, the challenges we face are significant — but so is the strength of our collective determination. The progress we’ve made this year, and over the past ten, remind us of what is possible when we work together with purpose and conviction. Your dedication fuels our hope for the future and inspires our continued commitment to this work. We will not back down. Together, we will safeguard progress won and lay the foundation for an inclusive multiracial democracy.

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Why Funders Must Support Local News Before, During and After the Election

Josh Stearns
/
October 30, 2024

We are just one week away from Election Day in the U.S., and in this week, good information matters more than ever — from coverage of candidates, to information about how and where to vote, to endorsements. This is particularly true in local communities where voters are deciding on everything from president, to school boards, to affordable housing.

Yet, we live in a time when falsehoods about the election, the issues, and the candidates themselves are spreading rapidly. And that’s not likely to change after the election — regardless of who wins. As Americans go to the polls, as they watch the results roll in, and as they move forward after Election Day, they need help sorting fact from fiction. To safeguard our democracy, funders cannot wait until the next election cycle to fund local news. We must act now.

As someone who has spent the better part of my career working with local news outlets, I have seen firsthand how local journalists can serve as the first line of defense against falsehoods that undermine public trust in our democracy. Local journalists are uniquely positioned to understand the nuances of their communities, to reflect residents’ diverse voices and viewpoints, and to build bridges and find solutions. This makes them a powerful defense against anti-democratic tactics that seek to divide us and diminish us.

However, even in this critical moment for democracy, local newsrooms remain largely underfunded and overlooked. A coalition of foundations that have mobilized around the Press Forward campaign just gave $20 million to more than 200 local newsrooms — an unprecedented set of grants. But it only just scratched the surface of what is needed — more than 900 newsrooms applied for funding.

There is an incredible movement of civic media entrepreneurs rebuilding local news from the ground up, reimagining how reporting can spark civic engagement, and reinvesting in people and places that have long been marginalized in our communities and our democracy. If funders step up now, we can ensure this emerging ecosystem of hundreds of new local newsrooms are ready to report on what happens after the election.

Recent natural disasters underscore the urgency for investing in local news. After Hurricane Helene, false claims spread in North Carolina that FEMA and state officials were using storm recovery efforts to impose stricter controls on local residents. These rumors, fueled by fear, quickly generated confusion, mistrust, and even threats of violence, but local journalists stepped in to clarify the situation with accurate reporting.

We saw similar tactics during the 2020 election, during which Latino voters in Florida were inundated with false claims about voter fraud and mail-in ballots. This disinformation specifically targeted those with histories of living under authoritarian regimes to erode their trust in democratic processes. The same tactics continue to be used in this election cycle in other communities. Publishers of color reporting online, in print and over the air are helping set the record straight but need resources to dispel these false narratives.

Consider The Haitian Times and DocumentedNY, which played a critical role in debunking disinformation targeting immigrant communities in Springfield, Ohio, following the presidential debate. Rumors spread fear and sought to divide residents, but these journalists worked to give voice to the people behind the talking points. This came at a cost: outlets faced harassment, and a newsroom’s community event was canceled due to safety concerns amidst the more than 30 bomb threats to government buildings and schools in Springfield.

The power of local news as a check and balance on disinformation, hate and division is one of the reasons why anti-democracy forces target independent media. If we want local journalists to have our back, we need to have theirs.

Backing local journalism is not just about halting disinformation — it’s about creating a media ecosystem that can handle future challenges. Outlier Media in Detroit provides residents with vital information via text messages, empowering them to make informed decisions. Similarly, El Tímpano investigates health issues like lead in soil, and hosts community events for local residents to come test the soil in their backyards, and learn about steps they can take to protect their families.

By centering community voices, and helping people put information to use in their lives, a new generation of newsrooms are rebuilding trust in journalism at the local level and equipping residents to resist false narratives. Journalism like this strengthens civic engagement, weaves our social fabric, and helps build resilience against disinformation.

For funders, the message is clear: supporting local journalism is a powerful way to strengthen democracy. Initiatives like NewsMatch, the Racial Equity in Journalism Fund, and The Pivot Fund have created easy on-ramps for funders to ensure their dollars will support powerful, trustworthy community journalism. They are working to create more diverse, inclusive newsrooms that prioritize community engagement and equity. But we need more funders to step up — quickly and boldly.

The election is just one week away, but the work of covering the impact of this election is just beginning. Here at Democracy Fund, our new campaign, Election Day to Every Day, emphasizes that funder support must extend beyond the electoral cycle, ensuring local journalism can support resilient communities long after the votes are cast.

Our democracy depends on a well-informed public. Local journalism — especially new and emerging models — stand as one of the most critical tools to defend democratic values, build trust, and empower communities. For funders committed to advancing equity and the common good, the question is not whether to support local journalism, but how swiftly we can act.

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A Letter of Gratitude to Democracy Champions

Lara Flint, Sanjiv Rao & Lauren Strayer
/
October 29, 2024

We are seven days away from the 2024 election. You can feel the combination of excitement, anxiety, and fatigue in the air. In any given moment, many of us are experiencing some version of those feelings simultaneously. We want to take this moment to express our enormous gratitude for the work of every organization and individual that is working to build the inclusive, multi-racial democracy that our country needs.

This work is made harder and more necessary by the challenges our democracy is facing at this moment. Political violence is worsening, efforts to disenfranchise communities of color continue, and major newspaper owners are censoring their editorial boards. While our country has made great progress over the past 250 years — anchored by demands for change by systematically oppressed communities — progress is often met with resistance. Simply put, pro-democracy work is hard, complicated, and can feel like an endless cycle of two steps forward, one step back. We appreciate the work our grantees and partners are doing every day, even outside the spotlight of an election year, and acknowledge that philanthropy needs to do a better job of offering consistent, meaningful support.

This year’s election is rightly on our minds as we see and hear candidates up and down ballots across the country make their cases for how they will represent their constituents’ interests. Our commitment is to building a multiracial democracy where people are treated fairly, feel they belong, and have long-term power — and where our political system is open, just, resilient, and trustworthy.

We remain committed to helping sustain the fields and grantees doing this work every day and every year, and we commit to stepping up in the days, months and years ahead to ensure the pro-democracy field has the resources it needs to continue this important work year round.

No matter what happens over the next few weeks, we are humbled by the tireless work of pro-democracy civil society organizations and leaders to ensure our elections are free, fair, and representative. Many organizations have tightened their budgets and made it work to continue to build power in the marginalized communities that have been historically targeted and scapegoated during election cycles time and again. They are safeguarding the progress the pro-democracy field has made over the years, and continue to lay the foundation to respond to the  opportunities and challenges to come.

We know the work toward creating an inclusive, multi-racial democracy continues beyond Election Day, and Democracy Fund remains committed to that work in responsive partnership with others in philanthropy and with our grantees — on Election Day, and every day.

In deep and sincere gratitude,

Lara Flint – Managing Director, Elections and Institutions

Sanjiv Rao – Managing Director, Movements and Media

Lauren Strayer – Managing Director, Communications and Network

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Building Resilience to Political Violence

Tom Glaisyer, Democracy Fund; Michelle Barsa, Omidyar Network; Melanie Greenberg, Humanity United
/
October 24, 2024

The 2024 election cycle, marked by disinformation and the spread of authoritarian rhetoric, has exposed the deep polarization in American society. While the divisions in our country are not new, the strain on society is increasingly clear. We see this with public officials, civil servants, and everyday Americans who are feeling the impacts of threats, harassment, and rising political violence.

Though it may not be realistic to eliminate the threat of political violence immediately, we can build up our country’s resilience to it and slow its spread. We are not the first country to experience and overcome this challenge, which means there are best practices we can emulate and learn from.

Humanity United Senior Fellow, Dr. John Paul Lederach, Emeritus Professor of International Peacebuilding at Notre Dame, writes in his new book, “The Pocket Guide for Facing Down a Civil War”:

“While our legacy of American exceptionalism mostly scoffs at international comparisons, this does not exempt us from the patterns and dynamics that unleash what none of us wants for our children – the curse of widespread violence.”

Dr. Lederach further points out that building resilience to political violence requires an interconnected network of pro-democracy, peacebuilding, and social justice organizations, along with responsive donors open to supporting systems and networks. As a result of this strong web of allies, organizations on the ground can quickly and efficiently access the resources they need to prevent and mitigate political violence.

​​​In an attempt to consolidate and translate this learning, our three foundations – Democracy Fund, Humanity United, and Omidyar Network – ​have collaborated to​ more powerfully address the risks of hate-fueled political violence.

Risk Factors For Political Violence

​​​The guiding star for our joint project has been a healthier society marked by an inclusive, multi-racial democracy that is open, just, resilient, and trustworthy — one that addresses the risks of political violence.

Two organizations with their pulse on this issue, Over Zero and New America — both grantees of our foundations — shared an important analysis in 2019 for how to build resilience to political violence in the U.S., ​identifying four primary risk factors: elite factionalization, societal polarization, a rise in hate speech and rhetoric, and weakening institutions. ​​W​e continue to draw on their work, as well as the work of the Trusted Elections Fund and others highlighted in this piece on political violence by Democracy Fund’s President Joe Goldman.

Dr. Lederach’s recently published book also provides important wisdom and guidance. He observes that societies at risk of widespread violence tend to display an increase in:

  • the dehumanization of others;
  • exertions of fear and control over local populations via performative violence;
  • the intentional diminishment of trust in and capacity of political and other institutions to solve problems; and
  • the stoking of grievances that drive wedges between populations, patterns that are too often only recognized in retrospect after they have become entrenched in society.

After undertaking additional research and reviewing the research of our partners, we have prioritized three risks of political violence ​​​​​​​that we are using to guide our work. They are:

  • distrust of democratic institutions;
  • ​​​​increasing authoritarian sentiment and mobilization​​​; and
  • ​​​toxic polarization and targeted ​dehumanization campaigns.

Here’s what we found when we looked at each of these risk factors closely:

  1. Distrust of Democratic Institutions. There is growing concern among Americans about whether our democratic institutions are truly free and fair.​ When communities do not trust public institutions to equitably and effectively protect the populace, there is an increased likelihood of support for the arming of non-state actors.​​​ ​​​​​​​​​Fear-inducing rhetoric ​advanced by a factionalized elite has left many in the public uncertain that our democratic processes can be relied upon, and heightens the likelihood of violence. Failure of those institutions in the face of violence would be extremely damaging.
  2. ​Increasing Authoritarian Sentiment and Mobilization. ​​​​F​ar-right actors are increasingly organizing across their racial, religious, economic, and political resentments. They organize together to promote the ideas of white/Christian nationalism, anti-immigration, sovereign citizenship, and ​armed defense​​​. This organizing coincides with high rates of gun ownership, increasing ​normalization​​​ of political violence, organized militia activity, and ​​​white supremacist influence among military and law enforcement​. ​Under ​these conditions, it is possible that the just and peaceful transition of power could be contested in a violent manner.
  3. ​​Toxic Polarization and Targeted Dehumanization Campaigns. Troubling trends of dehumanization and ​identity-based ​polarization continue to rise as social trust declines. There is a widespread sentiment of non-belonging in American life, and ​​increasingly vitriolic public dehumanization ​campaigns​​​ ​target​​​ immigrant and LGBTQ+ communities​,​ in particular. Both narratives are amplified by increasingly politicized media outlets​ and social media algorithms​, which stoke moral outrage and inflate beliefs about intergroup hostility​.

In our international research, this level of dehumanization is often a driving force behind the justification and encouragement of violence.

Focusing on these three factors has allowed us to prioritize where we have made commitments. We will continue to deepen our understanding of the root causes of political violence through our discussions with grantees and others.

Building Resilience

In ​​​a​ strong, interconnected network of allies addressing the threats of political violence, we must include bridge builders and conflict mediators, alongside social and racial justice movements. We must also include LGBTQIA+ activists, democracy advocates, and supporters of pluralism in adjacent fields. ​Our foundations are​​​​​​​​​ already providing support for a number of organizations in th​ese​​​ space​s​; in particular, the Trusted Elections Fund is already playing a crucial role in the elections space. In addition, in 2024,​ ​we have increased our ​​​​support in four areas:

1. Strengthening relational infrastructure through building networks of key stakeholders across fields and at the local, state, and national levels. Crucially, these investments will help build the network of individuals who can deploy their resources and skills together to de-escalate crises when and where they occur. Over the longer term, these networks can address the root causes of political violence, while also strengthening democracy and encouraging belonging. The network is strongest when it weaves together partners with diverse skills, including​ but not limited to​:

  • monitoring and analysis specialists;
  • pro-democracy law enforcement and public safety officials;
  • cultural ​influencers and religious actors​​​;
  • election officials;
  • mediation experts;
  • peacebuilding organizations; ​and
  • ​​​pro-democracy activists.

2. Informing action so that ​predictions​​ and ​responses to violence are quicker, smarter, and more strategic. Through our investments, we aim to increase capacity for threat monitoring and de-escalation. Accurate information is essential for enabling an informed and effective response. Th​ese efforts might include​​​ ​​engaging community members to support with violence prevention and response​ and/or​​​ ​​​​​​​​strategically engaging law enforcement, via trusted partners.​ ​

3. Tending to the health and safety of those who are in harm’s way in order to support resilient movements in the face of threats and persistent harassment. Philanthropy will need to grapple with the attacks both in the immediate and in the aftermath. We must protect and support grantees, as well as their partners. This level of support will ​enable​​​ grantees and their partners to take care of their teams’ wellbeing while dealing with extreme stress.

4. Protecting the LGBTQIA+ community and, in particular, providing support to the transgender community against the current onslaught of ​targeted ​othering, dehumanization, and violence. We stand against all efforts that are intended to scapegoat the community, which only serve to consolidate and focus authoritarian and authoritarian-leaning tendencies. Here we have made commitments to joint funds and organizations that support organizations led by and serving or in allyship with the LGBTQIA+ community. As funders,we seek to bring together the philanthropic communities that support the gender non-conforming community as well as ​​democracy ​strengthening efforts​​​.

Over the past 18 months, we have consulted extensively with the field and have made commitments of approximately $2M in 2024 towards the priorities identified above. We intend to continue to adapt this approach as we learn from our partners on the ground, researchers, our partners in philanthropy, and others focusing on political violence.

​​​​​Working Together

As we seek to strengthen our interconnected network even further, we encourage foundations, pro-​​democracy organizations, and wider civil society to join us in this work. The election season is placing significant stress on our societal bonds​​ and​, while it will take time to address drivers of political violence, there is still much we can do now to prevent the contagion of political violence.

​​​This will require extensive efforts across philanthropy and the wider infrastructure of peacebuilding, social justice and democracy. We have learned from our grantees and partners within the U.S. and abroad that it is only through these concerted and broad-reaching coalitions that we can address the root causes of political violence, reduce toxic polarization, and build resilience in the face of complex threats.

To learn more about our approach to funding efforts to prevent and respond to political violence, please reach out to us.

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New Research Explores Connection Between Democracy and Local News

Teresa Gorman
/
October 15, 2024

Studies have long demonstrated that strong local journalism can encourage higher voter turnout, counter polarizing narratives, expose corruption, and lead to people feeling a strong sense of community.

We’ve seen much of this show up anecdotally in the local news ecosystems that Democracy Fund supports. We define a news ecosystem as the network of institutions, collaborations, and people that local communities rely on for news, information, and engagement. This approach puts people and places squarely at the center of our goals and vision.

When we launched our new Equitable Journalism strategy in 2023, we wanted to learn even more about how journalism is strengthening democracy. We recently partnered with Impact Architects (IA) to revisit the Healthy News & Information Ecosystem framework. This framework was initially built in 2020 in partnership with Impact Architects, Knight Foundation, and Google News Initiative to share models for understanding the health and evolution of local news ecosystems with other funders who were considering funding local news. The graphic below illustrates the four layers of data that our updated model uses to understand local news ecosystems:

A visual description of the Healthy News & Information Ecosystem "cycle" with Community Information Needs & Trust in Media leading to Community Indicators, leading to Information Providers, leading to Democracy Indicators, which lead back to Community Information Needs & Trust in Media.
This new “Democracy Indicators” layer provides a deeper understanding of how Democracy Fund’s vision of an inclusive multiracial democracy is coming to life, community by community. Some examples of data we’re taking into consideration include:

  • the availability of legal resources for local journalists;
  • the relative difficulty of voting for residents in different states;
  • and the percentage of residents who have recently contacted a public official, attended a political demonstration, and/or donated to a political candidate or organization.

Through these indicators we want to understand how expanding access to local news and information can result in deeper engagement with our democracy. We can then pair this layer of research with even deeper dives in ecosystems that include more community listening and collaboration.

How Democracy Fund Thinks About Local News Ecosystems

At Democracy Fund, we’ve invested over $15.75 million in local news ecosystems across the US since 2016. If our work is successful, then communities will have access to news and information that advances justice, confronts racism and inequality, and equips people to make change and thrive, wherever they live.

Over the years, we’ve seen exciting signs of progress:

  • In New Jersey, the state has allocated millions of dollars to bolster community media, building on years of community-informed organizing.
  • In North Carolina, media makers from the western mountains to the eastern coast are receiving recognition and resources for their work.
  • In New Mexico, more people have more opportunities to get involved in news gathering and reporting, including a fellowship program to help recent grads stay in-state.
  • The local news ecosystem funding model is also growing. Press Forward, a national coalition investing more than $500 million to strengthen local journalism, launched the Press Forward Local network modeled on this news ecosystem approach, which quickly grew to 25 chapters of local funder coalitions in its first year.

Findings from the Latest Research

While we purposefully didn’t rank the ten ecosystems that Democracy Fund explored overall because of their variety and diversity, the latest research shows there are still many promising themes that can be found across them, especially when we consider the ecosystems in different stages of their development.

Strong ecosystems (Chicago, Michigan, and New Jersey)

Strong ecosystems generally have higher than average indicators across most if not all of the four categories in the graphic above. There is evidence of a relationship among information providers, community, and civic engagement and democracy. These strong ecosystems demonstrate more consistency across the entire ecosystem. For example, this could be more equal access to information across various racial, ethnic, and/or linguistic groups.

Emergent ecosystems (Colorado, Georgia, New Mexico, and North Carolina)

Emergent ecosystems generally score higher than average across many of the indicators and/or groups of indicators and show evidence of gathering momentum. However, they still have gaps in information providers and/or access for significant segments of the population. Impact Architects also found less evidence of connection among information providers, community, and civic engagement in these ecosystems.

Ecosystems ripe with opportunity (Arizona, Oklahoma, and Washington, D.C.)

These ecosystems score lower than average across many indicators or categories of indicators. They demonstrate significant need and opportunity with respect to information providers and support for community and civic engagement. In each ecosystem, there are examples of bright spots across an uneven landscape. For example, this could be one strong region within a larger ecosystem or one prominent organization that is helping local news thrive.

Under-resourced ecosystems

Under-resourced ecosystems score lower than average across some indicators and/or categories of indicators and demonstrate significant need across information providers. These ecosystems have information gaps in communities and uneven and/or low levels of civic engagement. Impact Architects did not identify any under-resourced ecosystems in this assessment. However, these local news ecosystems are large and complex and there are likely under-resourced areas within many of the identified ecosystems.

How We’re Using What We’ve Learned

We believe that this framework can support conversations, including our own at Democracy Fund, about how we can take a more nuanced approach to learning about communities’ news and information ecosystem health. We have invested in this space for nearly a decade, and there is a lot we can learn from the changes over time. One of the most powerful things equitable local news can do is build powerful relationships between people that help them make change in their lives — and that is hard to track. We hope to revisit this data in the coming years to understand more of the changes taking place.

There are many organizations and projects taking on this challenge that we are grateful to continue learning with on this journey. We hope this framework serves as a resource for the field and this cohort of organizations, and welcome further ideas, collaboration, and feedback on the themes and ideas within it.

This work would not have been possible without the many folks who contributed time to share thoughts and feedback on their ecosystems. Thank you for all you do in Arizona, Chicago, Colorado, Michigan, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Washington, D.C., and beyond.

Please reach out to learn more about Democracy Fund’s work with local news ecosystems.

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Project 2025 is a threat to our democracy. Here’s how funding accountability work can help.

October 10, 2024

Readers of this blog have undoubtedly heard of Project 2025 by now. The 900-page document has been widely criticized for its ambitious and extreme plans to undermine and politicize career civil servants in the federal government, eliminate important safeguards against weaponization of government law enforcement, limit freedoms like access to reproductive healthcare, and much more. It aims to give the president unchecked power over the executive branch as a means to achieving policy goals that will negatively impact life for millions of Americans. The consequences will be far-reaching and difficult to reverse.

Thankfully, the government accountability field has prepared for years to preserve our system of checks and balances and ensure there are consequences for those who abuse their positions of power. Through coordination, litigation preparation, and public education, these organizations — including many Democracy Fund grantees — are preparing to halt and hinder these dangerous proposals.

In this piece, we’ll get deeper into how Project 2025 is a threat to democracy, how the accountability field is responding, and why funders must do more to provide sustained support to the field.

How is Project 2025 a threat to democracy?

Project 2025 is a threat decades in the making. The project is spearheaded by The Heritage Foundation and a coterie of influential groups, including America First Legal, Alliance Defending Freedom, Moms For Liberty and others that have espoused an authoritarian vision for governing. Its authors have advocated for ending marriage equality and LGBTQ+ protections, restricting abortion rights, mass deportations of immigrants, conservative takeovers of school boards, curtailing voting rights, and much more.

The proposals in Project 2025 touch on every aspect of federal policy-making, from education, to climate, to national security. At its foundation is a desire to weaken nonpartisan expertise throughout the government, increase the power of partisan officials, limit checks on the president, and roll back rights and freedoms to align with an authoritarian worldview. If put into place, these actions would not only reduce the effectiveness of the federal government, they would significantly enable abuses of power. Here’s what it would look like:

1. Weakening nonpartisan expertise would politicize and hamper essential government functions.

Project 2025 calls for the president to re-issue an executive order that allows for the replacement of a large swath of career officials, including scientists, researchers, and economists, with politically appointed cronies (known as “Schedule F”). These new officials would be selected based on loyalty tests and the extent to which they agree with the policies laid out in Project 2025, rather than qualifications and expertise. This opens the door to mismanagement of critical government functions, from air traffic controllers to food inspectors. A sobering example of this dynamic was illustrated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) response to the devastating aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, with unqualified political appointees being cited as one reason for the government’s failures.  More recently, public health researchers cited the appointment of a Coronavirus Response Coordinator with vague authorities as one of the key factors contributing to haphazard inter-agency coordination during the COVID-19 pandemic.

2. Removing checks on the president would lead to the weaponization of law enforcement. 

Project 2025 aims to politicize and weaponize the Department of Justice and other law enforcement agencies. There is a long-held practice of insulating the Department of Justice from the partisan goals of the president. This firewall protects the rule of law against real or perceived bias or influence. It prevents a president from ordering law enforcement agencies to selectively enforce the law for the benefit of his allies or detriment of his opponents. Project 2025 seeks to turn this norm on its head, by overturning policies that limit the president’s direct communication with the Attorney General and making explicit that all litigation strategies must be aligned with the president’s agenda. Project 2025 also proposes a vast expansion of the number of political appointees within the FBI, further opening the door for partisan motivations guiding investigatory decisions, rather than unbiased assessments of the law.

The impact of these changes could be the targeting, harassment, and eventual prosecution of perceived political foes of the president, selective enforcement of the law to benefit industries aligned with the president’s party, and legal actions against district attorneys who do not strictly follow the president’s agenda. Put simply, the rule of law — the foundation of our legal system – is at risk.

3. Rolling back federal policies that protect women, LGBTQ+ people, and communities of color would open the door to discrimination.

Project 2025 relies on a core element of the playbook used by authoritarians around the world — idolizing white, heterosexual men and the nuclear family while denigrating those who fall outside of this definition of a “real” American. To this end, Project 2025 seeks to roll back access to reproductive healthcare, target LGBTQ+ youth and families, and unravel federal policies to advance diversity and inclusion. It proposes eliminating guaranteed free access to emergency contraception while criminalizing the mailing of abortion medication — which could result in a de facto nationwide abortion ban. It orders the National Institute of Health to study the purported “negative effects” of gender affirming care for children while enabling adoption agencies to discriminate against same-sex couples. And it broadly prohibits federal agencies from working to ensure their programs, hiring processes, and staff training utilize diversity, equity, and inclusion principles. Taken together, these policies would make the government more hostile and less responsive to women, LGBTQ+ people, and communities of color — potentially turning back decades of progress.

These are just three examples. The plan is extensive, and its architects hold many ideas that are dangerous to our democratic system of checks and balances. For example, a key author of Project 2025, Russell Vought, argues the president should use an illegal practice called “impoundment” — the withholding of congressionally appropriated funds – to effectively defund any federal program or agency he wishes. The threat to American values and civil liberties is clear.

How is the accountability field responding?

The pro-democracy response to the authoritarian ideology underpinning a platform as dangerous and sweeping as Project 2025 must be bold and comprehensive. It requires a broad coalition of groups with expertise on issues from healthcare to tax policy that are ready to fight in court and the court of public opinion. Thankfully, strategies for slowing or stopping the worst aspects of Project 2025 are in motion, and the field is coordinating to respond on Day One. Activities groups are pursuing include:

1. Research on Project 2025 policies and their impact.

The fact we know as much as we do about the proposals in Project 2025, and how dangerous they are, is due in large part to the indefatigable efforts of groups like Accountable.US, which shed light on the vast network of groups, supporters, and funders of the project — many of whom are influential political operatives. Documented helped uncover secret training videos provided to the supporters of Project 2025, providing additional context for how it could be implemented and even advice from its authors on how to avoid the scrutiny of the pro-democracy field. And the Center for American Progress reviewed all 900+ pages to highlight its most pressing threats. Without these efforts, the democracy field would be less informed — and likely less prepared to respond. Accountability-focused organizations have proven their worth, confirming the need to consistently support their efforts.

2. Raising awareness around Project 2025 policies and their impact.

The research underway is not only essential for groups that are planning legal and other responses, it is key to raising the public’s awareness. Polling now shows that a majority of Americans have heard of Project 2025 (a significant increase from just a few months ago) and more importantly, it shows that Americans view the policies negatively. Indeed, it is hard to imagine that Project 2025 would receive almost-daily front page coverage in national news outlets and extensive coverage in popular shows like Last Week Tonight or The Daily Show without the tireless efforts of these organizations.

3. Preparing for the legal and regulatory battles ahead. 

Many of the policies in Project 2025 depend on regulatory and executive actions. To prevent or delay them, Democracy Forward is coordinating a broad range of issue-advocacy groups to prepare legal and other responses. They have also been a leading voice in congressional testimony regarding the harms of Project 2025. The Partnership for Public Service is working with media outlets to tell stories about real-life civil servants to help the public better understand the critical role of federal workers. It is also helping ensure federal employees understand their rights, building off of successful work coordinated by the Partnership, Protect Democracy, the Project On Government Oversight, Democracy Forward, and others, to advance a new federal rule that will make it harder to implement Schedule F.

4. Strengthening guardrails to prevent abuses

Many dangerous elements of Project 2025 are possible only because of weak or nonexistent checks on presidential power. An over-reliance on norms and policies that the president may discard at will paves the way for abuses. Combined with inaction and even assent from Congress and the courts, this is a problem decades in the making and one that will persist without further action. The accountability field is working to bolster guardrails to prevent abuse by:

  • Identifying weaknesses in the law and proposing model reforms. This includes research by Protect Democracy to better understand the weaknesses an authoritarian can exploit and a blueprint for model guardrail legislation from CREW.
  • Supporting key oversight functions in government. This includes work by the Project on Government Oversight to strengthen internal watchdogs, including Inspectors General, and work by the Government Accountability Project and Whistleblower Aid to support disclosures by government employees and contractors.
  • Demanding the courts and Congress hold the executive branch accountable. This includes legal advocacy and court filings from the Constitutional Accountability Center and work by Public Citizen to pressure Congress to investigate government wrongdoing.

What funders can do now

The work described above is just a snapshot of the ongoing efforts to understand and fight back against Project 2025. These efforts must be sustained through, and beyond, 2025. The threat encapsulated by the extreme policy proposals within Project 2025 existed before its publication and will continue to loom over our democracy even if not implemented next year. While the project is notable for its audacious scope, its policies have been years in the making and include the core tenets of the authoritarian movement.

We must sustain funding for research, communications, legal, and advocacy efforts about Project 2025, its authors and supporters: it guts checks and balances, threatens the rule of law, and is a brazen attempt to turn our democracy toward authoritarianism.

Please reach out to learn more about specific funding gaps, needs, and opportunities that Democracy Fund has gathered from our grantees and network.

 

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Our Work is Not Done After Election Day

Joe Goldman
/
October 9, 2024
A drawing of two individuals placing the final piece in a stone bridge. Above and to the left of the bridge is the “Election Day to Every Day” logo consisting of dark blue text (“Every Day to”) above light blue text (“Every Day”), divided by a thin orange line.

Our grantees are on the frontlines of the 2024 election, doing everything they can to ensure free, fair, and representative elections for our country. We know their work will not be done on Election Day — yet many of these nonpartisan organizations typically experience a sudden dropoff in funding after November.

This withdrawal of support threatens their ability to resist the authoritarian playbook, fuel a pro-democracy governing agenda, and build durable power to support an inclusive, multi-racial democracy. Anti-democracy forces don’t defund their infrastructure after every election cycle, forcing groups to downsize and lose momentum — and we shouldn’t either.

That’s why we’re launching a new campaign called Election Day to Every Day. Following on the success of this year’s All by April campaign, we’re inviting the philanthropic community to join us in ensuring the pro-democracy movement can be sustainable and resilient not just leading into Election Day, but every day that follows.

The boom and bust cycle of election-year giving is toxic. Unless we change our behavior as donors, our grantees will not be able to make progress toward the inclusive multiracial democracy that is so vital for everything we care about.

“People’s Action Institute is working together with networks and organizers across the country to scale up the movement for social justice. We can’t maintain the momentum we need to defeat authoritarianism when funding across the field drops off after every election. But with consistent support, we can strengthen our communities to create a vibrant, multiracial democracy that works for all of us.” – Sulma Arias, Executive Director, People’s Action Institute

With the Election Day to Every Day campaign, we are trying to do things differently. Together, philanthropy will continue our support for building an inclusive multiracial democracy. As a community, we commit to:

  1. Start Planning Our 2025 Giving Now: We lose vital time when we fail to plan ahead and consider alternative scenarios for the future. Donors need to consider how our changing context could impact our strategy and priorities, so that we and our grantees can respond quickly to new needs on the ground. Anti-democracy forces are well-resourced and ready for multiple governing scenarios. We need to prepare for the same. Now is the time to start planning – not next year.
  2. Provide a Bridge into Next Year: Many grantees come out of a hard fought election exhausted and with real gaps in funding. It’s not uncommon for leadership transitions to take place – further complicating the situation. Moving up grant decisions to the first quarter of 2025 or providing bridge funding allows grantees to avoid having to lay off staff and eases the pressure as they pivot to respond to new challenges.
  3. Commit to Multi-Year Support: The single most important thing that donors can do for the health of our grantees is to provide multi-year support. Doing so allows them to plan, build infrastructure, and deploy longer-range strategies. This longer-term view makes our grantees more resilient to a changing environment.
  4. Support Safety and Security: Grantees are facing evolving safety and security threats leading up to and following Election Day. Many are encountering cyber attacks and threats of physical violence. All of them have staff who are experiencing burn-out and trauma. If we want our grantees to sustain themselves past Election Day, we need to provide for their safety and well-being.

Individual donors, foundations, donor advisors, and other philanthropic organizations are all invited to join this critical campaign to change the culture of philanthropy. You can join by becoming an “Election Day to Every Day” signatory and by spreading the word within your networks.

Together, we can ensure the pro-democracy field is ready for the future. We came together powerfully earlier this year under the All by April banner, which mobilized at least $155 million to ensure our grantees had the resources they needed early in an important election year. Now we must keep our foot on the gas and make sure our democracy field partners know that we have their backs not just on Election Day, but Every Day.

Please feel free to reach out to us with any questions.

Democracy Fund is a foundation working to build an inclusive, multiracial democracy that is open, just, resilient, and trustworthy.

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