When Cleveland VOTES was founded in 2014, the organization was focused on one community: people returning home after incarceration. Erika Anthony and co-founder Crystal Bryant-Agyemang had been volunteering together on a Cleveland-area reentry coalition when they kept hearing the same questions about voting. People weren’t sure whether they were eligible to register, and misinformation was everywhere.
As they worked alongside returning citizens, they saw the same pattern elsewhere. Different communities faced different barriers, but the need was remarkably similar. People were looking for trusted organizations that could help them navigate civic life.
“We began to see returning citizens are not the only population that are being disenfranchised as it relates to our voting processes and systems,” Anthony said. “We began to expand our partnerships more and more, and through that, we’re also listening and we’re learning from the folks that we’re in relationship with.”
What they heard reshaped Cleveland VOTES and broadened its scope. Today, the organization works with neighborhood groups, community development corporations, culturally specific organizations, nonprofits, and residents across Northeast Ohio. As the organization expanded its partnerships, it became clear that their role wasn’t to become the trusted voice in every community—because those voices already existed.
So rather than focusing energy on providing redundant solutions, Cleveland VOTES became what she calls “an intermediary, a go-between.”
“It became clear there was no one else serving as the connective tissue,” Anthony said. “We don’t need to be the doer of all things, but we could definitely be the orchestrator… providing grants, training, resources, and connectivity.”
That philosophy guides the organization’s partnerships.
Anthony summed it up another way: “It’s almost like matchmaking,” she said, laughing. “We’ve literally done civic speed dating at different events over the years.”
It’s also one of the reasons Cleveland VOTES and Nonprofit VOTE have been natural partners over the years. In both our theories of change and our experience, we know nonprofits are uniquely positioned to engage communities because they have built trust long before election season begins.
That philosophy guides how Cleveland VOTES prioritizes building community with its programs.
“Voting in particular is something that deeply, deeply requires trust because it’s considered a taboo subject,” said Senior Strategist Lique Gates, “And when you walk up to a stranger and you’re asking them to trust you, not being from that community is all the more of a barrier.”
Building that trust often comes down to ways of organizing that center authenticity and open up new ways to bring you and your community members to the same table—sometimes literally.
“If I’m asking you to come to an event at six p.m. at night, that’s dinner time,” Gates said. “How can I invite you into my space when you could be at home eating dinner? We provide your meal because we have dinner with you… dinner and a conversation.”
“If a conversation is naturally happening and it’s something that is bringing everybody in that space joy, you should let that keep going,” Gates added. “Whatever you have on your slide deck should not dictate or overrule what is happening in that space.”
“I remember one time someone was like, ‘I wasn’t registered to vote, but after attending your presentation, I felt so comfortable doing it because I trust you,'” she said. “[I] was like, okay. This is why we do the work.”
That model of community building first shows dividends in the way that engagement grows out of that first, accessible on-ramp. Some people are ready for a nine-month leadership incubator; others have time for a single workshop. The key for lasting engagement is to create varied and responsive ways for people to get involved. The different types of programs and roles in turn allow “people [to] see themselves in this broader spectrum of civic and community building,” Anthony said.
When Anthony talks with nonprofit leaders who are interested in folding civic engagement into their work, her advice is practical. Start with the community you already serve. Understand your capacity. Find partners who are already doing the work. Build slowly.
“We developed very organically over 12 plus years. We didn’t come out the gate with 20 staff… We started very small, and we were very methodical in how we wanted to grow.”
She also encourages organizations not to confuse leadership with ownership.
“Leading doesn’t always mean being in front,” Anthony said. “We are very intentional about recognizing where we do need to lead because there is a gap… but where we also can step back and just allow another partner or another organization to be the lead.”
Civic engagement doesn’t begin with launching a new program. It begins by understanding your community, investing in relationships, recognizing that the people closest to a challenge are often closest to the solution, and reminding them that every choice they make matters
And, as Anthony put it, “Opting out is a decision.” Cleveland VOTES has spent more than a decade helping more people decide to participate.
