Why is We Vote a Nonprofit?

There’s plenty of money to be earned in politics. An estimated $4 billion dollars are spent during midterm election years, with another $2 billion driving up that bill in presidential election years. [1]  Quite a bit of this money ends up being paid to for-profit companies, whether they be political consultants, or media companies showing TV ads. America's for-profit framework leads to a lot of improvements in modern life, but its involvement in American politics must be viewed with a skeptical eye. For example, Facebook has been criticized recently for how much influence they have on the outcomes of elections because their business model is, at times, at odds with the flow of accurate information. By law, a for-profit company’s first mandate, even socially conscious companies, must be to make a profit for their shareholders. This can lead to a company making decisions behind closed doors that are not in the best interests of the American public. All too often, companies end up selling user data as a way to make money.

Rather than seek to generate profits for shareholders, We Vote remains mission driven. We are proud that We Vote was built for the benefit of the voters and organizations who use our platform, as opposed to for a few shareholders. Since our online platform is open to all voters, no matter their political affiliation, we are beholden to good ideas, to strong civic duty and to a vibrant public sphere. And that is what makes We Vote a nonprofit. If We Vote were a for-profit company, we would be accountable to shareholders with financial interests. Instead, We Vote is accountable to volunteer board members whose guiding light is our mission to help you vote your values. We Vote thinks it is important that voters have a place to explore local and national ballots where their data isn’t owned or used by a for-profit company. 

We Vote is made up of two nonprofit organizations. One is a 501(c)(3) which is focused on gathering accurate data, and the other is our 501(c)(4) which is focused on enabling conversations within your network about what is on the ballot. Each year, We Vote publicly releases our financial statements. We Vote wants you to feel comfortable that our goals serve American democracy, and this financial transparency is one huge step toward developing trust.

Another important aspect of We Vote’s trustworthiness has to do with the accurate and up-to-date information about upcoming elections that We Vote provides voters. We Vote combines official data with data generated by the people who use We Vote. We are not alone in this approach. One of the most popular websites in the world, Wikipedia, also uses data generated by their users. The information on Wikipedia is voluntarily added by users. When Wikipedia was first gaining popularity, there were many public concerns that the information on Wikipedia was not as reliable as information from encyclopedias created by big companies. But that perception has changed in recent years as Wikipedia has shown similar levels of accuracy to professionally edited sources because of how many people review and verify the information. Wikipedia is regularly edited by volunteers who want to make sure everyone has access to accurate information. Similarly, We Vote is a place where, regardless of your values, you can find (and share) information to help you and your friends vote for people and measures that best represent your values.

It is easy to understand why nonprofits are trusted, but it is more difficult to understand how they function. How does We Vote survive without financial incentives? Since being founded, we estimate that all of the work our volunteers have done would have cost over $1 million. We also benefit from in-kind gifts and services that otherwise would cost over $250,000 annually, like Amazon Web Services Hosting, Center for Technology and Civic Life data, DLA Piper legal pro-bono services, Google AdWords, Greenberg Traurig, and LLP legal pro-bono services. To date, We Vote has only needed about $75,000 in cash donations to cover hard costs. We Vote’s success has nothing to do with money, and everything to do with our team of volunteers. Our team is driven by a shared passion for helping voters become more confident and informed about their voting choices. Check out our “Volunteering at We Vote” blog post, if you haven’t already!

Alexandra Deas is passionate about utilizing the law to allow citizens to have full access to our government, especially the right to vote. She has spent the past few years working for a District Attorney and at a private law firm in the Bay Area and volunteers at We Vote.