Mission and Program Goals
Mission
The California Voter Foundation is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization working through research, oversight, outreach and demonstration projects to improve the election process so that it better serves the needs and interests of voters.
Program Goals (adopted by CVF's Board of Directors April 8, 2024):
Theory of Change
Elections are what keep people safe and free. In the United States, elections are administered at the state level; unlike other modern democracies, there is no centralized election authority. While there are a number of federal laws and constitutional rights enjoyed by voters nationwide, the details of how, when and where Americans vote are left up to the states. California has an outsized role in U.S. elections, given that the state is home to one in eight U.S. voters, technology innovations, and is considered a national trendsetter/”bellwether” state. Voting reforms implemented in California, some of which were championed by the California Voter Foundation (CVF), have led other states to adopt similar changes. Such state-by-state changes are facilitated by CVF and others through networking and outreach between local, state and federal election reform leaders. Continuing to advance election reforms in California while also engaging in network-building among election leaders within California and nationwide helps ensure a strong and reliable elections process that is the basis of a free and safe society.
Background
The California Voter Foundation pioneers significant election reforms in California and beyond that make the voting process better for voters. Originally founded in 1989 by California Secretary of State March Fong Eu, CVF was re-founded in 1994 by Kim Alexander and since then has been at the forefront of the intersection between technology and democracy.
CVF first innovated voter education via the internet to help voters make informed, confident choices when they vote. One of CVF’s early achievements was to bring “digital sunlight” to campaign finance reports by requiring electronic filing and online disclosure, enabling the public to more easily track the influence of money in politics.
Beginning in 2001, CVF began working to mandate voter-verified paper ballots and post-election audits in California and nationwide to boost voter confidence in the security and accuracy of the election process. CVF also advocates for sensible technological limits such as preventing insecure, online voting and protecting voters’ registration data. As vote-by-mail balloting rates began increasing in California, CVF drew attention to the problem of ballot rejection and advocated for reforms such as signature curing, online lookup tools, and implementing a grace period to accept ballots postmarked by Election Day. Since the 2020 election and the rise in threats to elections personnel, CVF has focused on protecting election workers and strengthening the elections sector.
CVF pursues its mission and goals through research, advocacy, outreach, demonstration projects, networking and public relations. A longstanding reputation, unwavering commitment to nonpartisanship, devotion to protecting and improving the voting process, and relationships with key institutions, government agencies and leaders, the news media and nonprofits enable CVF to be an effective and efficient catalyst for significant reform.
1. Advance informed, confident voting by disseminating reliable, accurate information to voters and reducing voter confusion through standardization of election practices and effective communication from trusted messengers.
American democracy relies primarily on campaigns to inform voters about their ballot choices. Campaigns select which voters to contact based on past voting history, preferring to direct their resources to likely voters while new, infrequent and potential voters are ignored. This sets up a vicious cycle the perpetuates a voting public over-represented by white, older, well-educated homeowners and underrepresented by Californians who are younger, housing-insecure and people of color.
By engaging in direct voter outreach and education through the calvoter.org web site and media interviews, promoting increased funding and more effective voter education and outreach by election departments that voters view as trusted messengers, and engaging in policy work to standardize election practices across counties, CVF aims to create an equal opportunity for all Californians to be informed, engaged voters and shape a voting public that reflects all of California’s diverse population.
2. Support and protect election officials and election administration through increased funding, legal and law enforcement protections, addressing mis- and disinformation and community-building.
CVF’s work to support election security includes protecting the personnel who conduct elections. In the wake of the 2020 Presidential election and the January 6th Insurrection, elections officials and their staff have increasingly come under attack, resulting in an alarming number of key personnel leaving the field altogether and a new generation of election administrators in need of training and professional development.
In response to this crisis, CVF established the Election Community Network in June 2021 to strengthen connections among leaders across the United States working in the government, nonprofit, academic and philanthropic sectors to support and protect election officials and election administration. Through monthly meetings, a network email list, and direct connections, ECN’s 200 participants share research, achievements, challenges and ideas, with a focus on funding, legal protections, improved communications and media support for election officials.
CVF also promotes Election Hero Day, and participates in the nationwide Election Verification Network which CVF helped create, develop and facilitate. CVF works both statewide and nationwide to advancing funding to support election administration and also promotes collaboration between nonprofits and local election officials through its involvement in Future of California Elections, a statewide network of voter advocacy groups and local election officials.
3. Promote continuous election security and auditing improvements as well as increase public awareness of how elections are securely conducted and results verified.
With the increased role of technology in the voting process, there is an ongoing need for security improvements as well as voter education about how elections are securely conducted. Election security is about both actual security and the public’s perception that elections are secure. It is not sufficient to simply say “Trust us.” False claims of election fraud and actual election security problems combined with the complexity and variation of voting systems and state laws make it difficult for many Americans to trust the voting process and easy for bad actors to exploit this confusion. We must be proactive and give longtime and prospective voters alike valid reasons to trust that their ballots will be accurately counted if they are expected to have an incentive to vote, invest the time and effort required to make informed choices and care about the outcomes of elections.
CVF works to support these needs through legislative advocacy, media outreach, direct engagement in the voting technology certification process, education via the calvoter.org web site, media outreach, and by encouraging more citizen oversight of local election practices through voter advisory and oversight committees. With growing threats from artificial intelligence creating confusion and misleading voters it is more important than ever that election officials have the tools they need to keep elections secure. CVF advocates for increased federal and state funding for election administration because local election officials are the most logical and reliable source for election security messaging. They must be provided the resources needed to keep our voting systems secure and inform voters how they are kept secure.
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Statement
The California Voter Foundation is committed to ensuring that California voters, regardless of race, ethnicity, language, ability, age, income, education or the county in which they live, enjoy equal access and opportunities to participate in the voting process. We are committed to supporting legislative reforms and policies that will ensure those elected to serve Californians and the laws they enact are shaped by Californians of a diversity comparable to the state’s population. CVF recognizes that longstanding overt and subtle discrimination toward many communities discourages would-be voters from voting and deters participation. Working to combat this institutional history, and recognizing also that diversity is California’s strength, and must be reflected in its voting public, representatives and policy decisions is at the core of CVF’s program work. It is in the interest of all Californians for those currently underrepresented among voters to feel they are stakeholders and that voting matters.