Voter Engagement
Voter Engagement
We cannot conceive a path to our long-term goals without ensuring that our communities are full participants in our democracy. Community Change with our partners is building a large-scale operation that takes into account the year-round ways in which democracy can be activated from the streets to the ballot box. It is not enough to change the demographic makeup of our electorate — it has to be accompanied by a year-round pipeline of engagement with public life. Housed within the appropriate legal entities, our program increases civic participation, deepens political education, and builds permanent infrastructure for year-round engagement.
Voting is a necessary but insufficient action in a true democracy. Civic participation is not just about voting on Election Day. Community Change sees year-round democracy as a model to both change the electorate and build infrastructure in communities. It is a key way that low-income communities, particularly low-income communities of color, can build and exercise power. We have deep roots in the communities where we work, and we are helping our grassroots partners build their civic engagement muscles for many years to come. Our partners in this work are often the same organizations that work with us on issue campaigns and longer term power-building — so the training, technical assistance, and support that we provide each election cycle remain in the community and sustain long-term social change.
Our sister organization, Community Change Action, houses the 501(c)4 side of this work. Community Change Action engages millions of voters to make their voices heard at the ballot box. In 2024, Community Change Action and our grassroots partners and leaders will attempt to reach 15 million voters and have 2+ million conversations in seven prioritized states that align with key U.S. House and Senate races and the path to winning the presidency.