The Carter Center seeks proposals from local organizations with creative ideas to educate voters in their communities about the electoral process.
Donor Name: The Carter Center
State: Arizona
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 05/31/2023
Size of the Grant: up to $10,000
Grant Duration: 3 months
Details:
Applicants should be nonpartisan groups with deep roots in a particular county or counties and an interest in providing information about how the electoral process in the county(ies) works. Applicants should plan to coordinate with local county election officials as possible to ensure the accuracy of any information released. Applicants may elect to target their information campaigns to particular constituencies with whom they have especially strong relationships (young voters, elderly voters, veterans, voters with disabilities, etc.), but agree that all materials produced under the program will be accessible to any interested resident of the state of Arizona. Recipient organizations should demonstrate a willingness and an ability to conduct outreach with individuals of all political persuasions, including independent voters. Applicants furthermore agree to take a fact-based approach to their work. Selected recipients will be committed to sharing accurate information with citizens so that they can make up their own minds, but will not encourage their target audiences to vote in any particular way nor to advocate for or against substantive changes to the election procedures. The goal of this program is to provide engaging, credible, localized knowledge to citizens about the administration of elections in their county.
Potential examples of activities that could be supported under this award include:
- Citizen journalism efforts to cover the activities of local elections departments, local hearings on electoral reforms, and preparations for the 2024 election
- Focus groups to understand common local concerns about the electoral process. Production of fact sheets, short videos, or other communications products that speak to these questions or concerns. For example, if citizens do not understand how signature verification works on early ballots, provide clear and simple outreach products on the steps in the process.
- Outreach events around voter registration or upcoming local elections
- A public art contest to design eye-catching infographics on the life of the ballot or an electoral calendar to remind people about important upcoming dates in the elections process
- Public talks on different aspects of the electoral process, such as procurement of elections equipment, or campaign finance
- Other creative ideas that we would never have thought of on their own!
Funding Information
The Carter Center is able to provide funds of up to $10,000 per organization to implement your unique idea. Amounts will be assessed upon review of applications. In addition, recipient organizations will be invited to attend periodic training sessions on topics such as message development, electoral legal analysis, or other issues to be defined in coordination with the recipients based on their interests. They will also have an opportunity to participate in online or offline networking with other recipients to learn from effective voter education practices across the state. Finally, The Carter Center will strive to connect local organizations with needed subject-matter experts as-possible to help the organization to realize its program.
Organizations do not need to have significant previous experience with electoral education, but should have demonstrated previous capacity to provide public education and to manage funds in the requested amount.
Project Period
June 1 through August 15, 2023
Criteria
It is a requirement that your organization be a registered 501(c)3, 501(c)5, 501(c)6, 501(c)7, 501(c)10, 501(c)16, 501(c)19, 501(c)23, 501(d) or be a service organization, faith-based group, mutual aid society or community group with a clear mission statement or bylaws. Recipients will be required to have directors or equivalent governing body.
For more information, visit Request for Proposals.
