The Equitable Civic Engagement Fund (ECEF) aims to provide grants to nonprofit organizations committed to educating, connecting and empowering voting age residents in the Greater Cleveland area.’
Donor Name: Cleveland VOTES
State: Ohio
County: Ashtabula County (OH), Cuyahoga County (OH), Geauga County (OH), Lake County (OH), Lorain County (OH), Medina County (OH)
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 05/09/2026
Size of the Grant: $1000 to $10,000
Grant Duration: Grant Duration Not Mentioned
Details:
ECEF is about bridging resources and organizations to a greater purpose of reclaiming and rewriting narratives around voting and elections.
They seek organizations that want to help us build a better democracy and who are committed to racial equity and participatory practices. Ultimately, they seek to shift power structures while catalyzing innovation and inclusive strategies to strengthen the social fabric of the community.
Types of Grants
- Capacity Building: Applicants considering this category are seeking funding to support infrastructure and/or organizational capacity. Permissible items for this category may include costs associated with general operating, staffing, stipends for volunteers or training. To be eligible for this category, applicants must demonstrate in their application how they will reach at least 1500 voter contacts.
- Activate + Mobilize: Applicants considering this category have a plan to educate, engage and empower voting age constituents. Applicants plan to conduct nonpartisan education, registration and mobilization (including Get-Out-to-Vote efforts). To be eligible for this category, applicants must demonstrate in their application how they will reach 850 voter contacts.
- Educate + Engage: Applicants considering this category seek to amplify and educate voting age constituents around the importance of nonpartisan engagement. The applicants will use funds to support democracy building initiatives such as forums, pop up events and printing voter guides. To be eligible for this category, applicants must demonstrate in their application how they will reach 175-500 voter contacts.
Funding Information
- Capacity Building: up to $8,000
- Activate + Mobilize: up to $5000
- Educate + Engage: up to $2,000
Eligibility Criteria
- Organizations must be a 501c3 or a fiscally sponsored organization
- Organizations must be an Ohio-based organization or a national organization with an office in Ohio
- They are seeking to partner with organizations that have a general understanding of the Equitable Civic Engagement framework
- They are seeking to partner with organizations are committed to, have attended trainings and/or have embedded racial equity and inclusion in their organization/work
- They are seeking the basic organizational details and contact information for the Executive Director and Primary Point Person for the grant period
For more information, visit Cleveland VOTES.
