Megan Murray Cusick is the Assistant Director for State Advocacy at American Library Association, working in partnership with ALA’s state chapters and affiliates to speak with a unified voice about the transformative power of our nation’s nearly 120,000 public, school, academic, and special libraries. Prior to joining American Library Association, Megan was a high school read more
Start Your Summer Voter Engagement Work Summer is the perfect time to start planning how you will engage potential voters in the 2020 Elections taking place on November 3rd. As states begin to reopen and people become more mobile, we nonprofits can help make sure our communities have the information they need to cast their read more
It’s been one month since a national emergency was declared in response to the spread of COVID-19. This has brought huge changes to the daily lives of most Americans as events were cancelled, schools and businesses closed, and we were asked to stay home to save lives. The nonprofit sector has had to adapt quickly read more
Nonprofit VOTE and Independent Sector are partnering to bring you a new blog series, Mission Possible. This series will explore the different ways a variety of nonprofits are embedding voter engagement into their work. We believe that even limited voter engagement can help you enhance your mission and drive positive change for your communities and read more
… Well 97 years and counting. The American Legion’s strong tradition of voter and civic engagement kicked off again this election year when in January it made a 2016 call to Legionnaires to exercise their duty as active citizens and promote get out the vote activities in this year’s presidential campaign. Forty-five years before the IRS read more
This evening, Nonprofit VOTE released a new report that examines the impact nonprofits have when they engage the communities they serve in voting and elections. Engaging New Voters: The Impact of Nonprofit Voter Outreach on Client and Community Turnout is based on an analysis of 129 nonprofits that did voter engagement work across nine states read more
On May 17, 1957 in Washington, DC, Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his “Give Us the Ballot” address. It was three years after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down “separate but equal” in their Brown v. Board of Education decision and eight years before the Voting Rights Act would become law in 1965. “And so read more
Last month, I took the helm as the new executive director of Nonprofit VOTE, following founder George Pillsbury who is staying on as a senior consultant. I am thrilled about this exciting opportunity and I look forward to applying my 20 years of experience in the field to the important work of Nonprofit VOTE. Nonprofits read more
Voter engagement is a critical part of nonprofit work because it not only empowers the people and the communities we serve, but it also helps us further our missions. Voter engagement makes us relevant both during and after elections, helping to make us part of critical public policy discussions and allowing us to weigh in read more
For more than 50 years, the Rio Grande Valley of South Texas has had some of the lowest voter turnout in the country. Traditional political campaigns have not substantially changed these voter turnout rates: even in presidential election only two of ten eligible voters participate. A different approach to voter engagement is called for and read more
Community Health Vote is a project to support the nation’s 1,200 community health centers in establishing nonpartisan voter registration as one of the services they provide to their patients and communities on an ongoing basis. Its new website hosts an array of state-specific registration materials, including a community health center toolkit. Like other 501(c)(3) nonprofits, read more
Is it too soon to think about next year’s national midterm and the election of Congress, one-third of the Senate, two-thirds of state governors, and almost all state legislatures? No, definitely not. Unfortunately, most nonprofits won’t even begin considering their November 2014 plans until the end of next summer. In such a small window, there read more
The Boys & Girls Clubs of America‘s 2012 “Our Voice, Our Choice” campaign effectively combined many elements of the Nonprofit VOTE voter engagement model. 1. Commitment from the top. “Character and Citizenship” is one of BGCA’s six program foci, and the vice president responsible for this area was able to get institutional buy-in for voter read more
Voters won’t be selecting the next president this year, but they will be electing state and local government leaders. Don’t sit out during these important elections! Get Started with Nonprofit Voter Engagement Thursday February 21st, 2:00-3:00pm Eastern Looking for an introduction to nonpartisan voter engagement for nonprofits? Join us for an overview of nonpartisan dos read more
For a number of years, we’ve sought to fill an information void on voting and elections in the nonprofit sector with our webinar series. Webinars are free of charge for 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations. They are recorded and made available on-demand online, along with the PowerPoint presentation and audio file. Our webinar series will return in read more
Materials from last week’s web event, Nonprofits Get Out the Vote! Countdown to Election Day, are now available. Hundreds of nonprofits from across the county participated, demonstrating the growing momentum and support within the sector for nonpartisan voter engagement Couldn’t tune in? Watch the event on YouTube. If you subscribe to our channel, you’ll be read more
As part of their Design for Democracy program, AIGA–the professional association for design–is hosting a get-out-the-vote poster contest! Their Get-Out-the-Vote campaign invites designers to create nonpartisan posters and videos that inspire the American public to participate in the electoral process and vote in the 2012 general election. The initiative enables designers to engage in the read more
This week, one of our partners, the National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC) is launching Community Health Vote 2012–a national nonpartisan voter engagement campaign to establish voter engagement as an ongoing effort at as many health centers as possible. Marc Wetherhorn, NACHC’s National Advocacy Director, blogged: “Health centers are in a unique position to read more
One of our newest national partners, the Coalition on Human Needs (CHN) is an alliance of national organizations working to promote public policies that address the needs of low-income and other vulnerable people. Like many nonprofits involved in advocacy and public policy work, CHN believes that voter engagement complements these efforts. The Coalition on Human read more
Most of your New Year’s Resolutions are already set (and maybe even broken), but we have one more that can’t wait until next year. In 2012 we’ll elect the president, 33 U.S. senators, every member of the House of Representatives, and countless others in state and local races. 220 million Americans will be eligible to read more
Today is only the third day of the new year, but it officially marks the beginning of the 2012 presidential election. Iowa Republicans are kicking off the selection process for their party’s nominee, and results are expected to begin coming in around 8:30pm Eastern. Although 2012 is underway, it’s not too early (or late) to read more
We’re pleased to announce that Nonprofit VOTE is now on YouTube! In an effort to make our materials more accessible, our entire webinar library is now available on our YouTube channel. Although our 2011 webinar series has concluded, the presentations–as well as webinars from past years–can be viewed on demand at your convenience. Best of read more
Last month, candidates in Vancouver’s municipal elections campaigned a little differently—they dated voters. Of course, these were strictly platonic “dates” and were part of a candidate speed dating event organized by Get Your Vote On—a nonpartisan group who encourages youth participation. For many attendees, the format made perfect sense because “you’re going to be in read more
A new CIRCLE study, “Understanding a Diverse Generation: Youth Civic Engagement in the United States,” provides an in-depth analysis of recent youth civic engagement trends. The findings challenge many common myths about the ways in which young people (ages 18-29) are involved in our political system. The study found that at least three quarters of read more
In honor of Thanksgiving, we wanted to share just a few of the many things Nonprofit VOTE is grateful for this year. We’re thankful for… Our amazing network of state and national partners and their commitment to expanding nonprofit voter engagement among their affiliates. Election Day Registration because it ensures that everyone who wants to read more
Our final webinar of 2011 will start you thinking about next year’s general election and how your nonprofit can maximize your impact with the resources you already have. Plan Ahead: Building a Voter Engagement Timeline for 2012Thursday December 1st, 2:00-3:00pm Eastern The 2012 presidential election will be here soon, and it’s time to start thinking read more
The New Hampshire Center for Nonprofits, in partnership with the National Council of Nonprofits, is once again sponsoring the 2012 Primary Project, a presidential candidate education initiative. The Project empowers members of the nonprofit and civic sector to engage candidates campaigning in New Hampshire, while also raising candidate and public awareness of the impact and read more
The Federal Election Commission’s approval of the Colbert Super PAC has turned some heads, and it also has plenty of people wondering just what a PAC is and does. With names that all seem to include “America” and references to apple pie, it’s no wonder people are confused. (If you want to get in on read more
As state and federal budgets are tightened, nonprofits are being asked to shoulder a disproportionate share of cuts, while still being expected to maintain quality services. In response, many have stepped forward to advocate and lobby for their clients, their causes, and their funding. In addition to working with legislators, many nonprofits are recognizing the read more
Many thanks to last week’s webinar attendees! We are pleased that so many joined us for Nonprofits Increase Voter Participation: New Research from the Field to hear about the importance of nonprofit voter engagement. Whether or not you were able to tune in, you can still access the materials online: download the PowerPoint and the read more
Is your nonprofit registering new voters? Gearing up for a municipal election? Designing a candidate questionnaire? Well then let us know! At Nonprofit VOTE we love to hear from nonprofit organizations about the voter participation activities, projects, and events you’re working on, as well as why does your nonprofit participates in this work. So no read more
