This July, the Waldo County Democratic Committee was excited to be accepted into a national grant program providing funding, organizing resources, training, and coaching to rural Democratic party organizations. As a grantee, WCDC will be eligible for up to $500 per quarter to fund our work.
The grant program is funded by Movement Labs, an incubator and consulting firm building progressive power, through the Contest Every Race project. The program began in 2021 and expanded from 75 rural Democratic county parties in six states to more than 300 party and non-party teams in 30 states for the 2024 election cycle. We are one of three county party committees to receive one of the Contest Every Race grants, along with Franklin and Kennebec.
Contest Every Race was created to address the problem of thousands of local elections going uncontested each year. The grant program supports local Democrats’ goals of building volunteer networks, mobilizing voters, and recruiting candidates to run for local office such as school boards, town select boards, and city councils. Contest Every Race offers local party organizations an additional layer of resources, technical support, and training for rural and underserved community organizers.
We see the grant as a wonderful opportunity for WCDC to benefit from the funding, training, and networking resources of a national organization with proven expertise and great results. We’re also excited to connect with Democrats in other rural areas across the country through grant activities.
WCDC is using the grant to support projects such as young voter outreach, candidate recruitment, and get-out-the-vote efforts. Local Democrats can be involved in grant activities through training and campaign activities. Email info@waldocountydemocrats.com for more info or fill out our Volunteer Interest Form. Read this article for more background on the CER grant program.