Center for Voter Information
The Center for Voter Information, a 501(c)(4), and its partner organization, Voter Participation Center, a 501(c)(3), work to increase voter turnout and create a more representative democracy. VPC/CVI uses evidence-based strategies to increase participation by unregistered and low-propensity voters, with a primary focus on engaging people by mail. Together, the two groups have brought millions of Americans into the electoral process and have been especially successful in catalyzing higher voting by people of color and young people.
Why This Work is Important
Too many voices aren’t heard in elections. A large swath of eligible voters don’t participate in elections and turnout is disproportionately low for Blacks, Latinos and young people — particularly in midterm or off-year elections. It’s essential to bring more people into the electorate to have a truly representative democracy.
Expanding the electorate can help Democrats. Many of the groups that vote at the lowest level heavily favor Democrats when they do participate. While demography is not destiny, efforts to engage non- or low-propensity voters can have a major impact on electoral outcomes, especially in an era when elections are often decided by small margins.
Facilitating voting access and boosting participation is straightforward. A range of tools and strategies are proven to be effective in making it easier for people to register and vote, as well as encouraging them to do so. Leaders in voter mobilization, including VPC/CVI, prioritize tactics that have been validated through randomized-controlled trials.
Why donors should consider Voter Participation Center and Center for Voter Information
VPC/CVI has a record of impact. Since their founding 20 years ago, VPC and CVI have registered or mobilized more than 6 million voters. Their mailing outreach has registered more voters by mail than any other organization. Their 2020 impact report estimates that the groups were responsible for turning out at least 270,000 voters, with their highest impact coming in key states like Georgia, Arizona, Michigan and Ohio. They registered nearly 1 million new voters in that cycle and estimate that their mail registration campaign alone resulted in more than 110,000 votes cast from previously unregistered voters.
VPC/CVI is a leader on voter registration. While many electoral groups focus on turning out already registered voters, with little investment in registering new voters, VPC/CVI devotes huge energy to expanding the voting rolls and changing the overall composition of the electorate. At the same time, the groups also invest heavily in mobilization at election time.
Donors can have confidence that their funds will have an impact. By using evidence-based voter engagement strategies, VPC/CVI can accurately predict how much it will cost to catalyze voting by people who otherwise would not have participated. Donors can thus have a good sense of how their contributions to these groups are likely to affect voter turnout.
VPC/CVI has a long-term vision for future impact. Through research and data analysis, VPC/CVI has identified those states where demographic change is most likely to help drive electoral change thanks to the growth of the “New American Majority”: people of color, young people and unmarried women. So in addition to the VPC/CVI’s valuable work in current battleground states, it is mapping out a long-range plan for remaking American politics to create a more representative democracy.
Conclusion
Together, Voter Participation Center and Center for Voter Information are national leaders in registering and mobilizing voters. Few other groups have their depth of experience, track record, and sophistication for doing this important work.