Building Community Voice Fund

NAACP in Georgia - GOTV - Tyler Sterling

Amplifying our voices at the polls

The Building Community Voice Fund (BCVF) is a non-partisan fund established within the NAACP, in collaboration with GSSA, funders, and select partners, to provide grants to 501(c)(3) voter registration and voter turnout initiatives and organizations, including complementary voter education and voter protection programs.

BCVF focuses on down-ballot and local elections where outcomes can have positive influences on Black communities.

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2024 Targeted States

Eligible Counties

A significant percentage of residents in these eligible voting jurisdictions are voters of color. Check to see if your county is eligible for BCVF programming and support.

Eligible Counties and Elections:
- Marengo
  - Circuit Court Judge
  - County Judge
- Russell
  - County Council
Eligible Counties and Elections:
- Crittenden
  - County Commissioner
- Desha
  - County Commissioner
- Lee
  - County Commissioner
- Saint Francis
  - County Commissioner
Eligible Counties and Elections:
- Kent
  - County Council
  - School Board (5)
Eligible Counties and Elections:
- Duval
  - 4 School Board Seats
  - Circuit Court Judge (Districts 1-12)
- Hillsborough
  - District Attorney
- Saint Lucie
  - District Attorney
  - 2 School Board Seats
- Seminole
  - District Attorney
Eligible Counties and Elections:
- Baldwin
  - Sheriff
  - District Attorney
- Burke
  - Sheriff
  - District Attorney
- Cobb
  - Sheriff
  - Clerk of Circuit Court
  - District Attorney
- Jefferson
  - Sheriff
  - Clerk of Circuit Court
  - District Attorney
- Sumter
  - Sheriff
  - District Attorney
- Terrell
  - Sheriff
  - Clerk of Circuit Court
Eligible Counties and Elections:
- Peoria
  - District Attorney
  - County Council
- Saint Clair
  - District Attorney
- Will
  - District Attorney
  - County Council (Districts 6, 7, 10)
- Winnebago
  - District Attorney
  - County Council
Eligible Counties and Elections:
- Caddo
  - County Council (District 6)
  - School Board
- East Baton Rouge
  - County Council
  - Public Service Commissioner, District 2
  - School Board
Eligible Counties and Elections:
- Calvert
  - 3 School Board Seats
- Frederick
  - 3 School Board Seats
- Talbot
  - 3 School Board Seats
Eligible Counties and Elections:
- Kent
  - Sheriff
  - District Attorney
  - County Council
  - Clerk of Circuit Court
  - Mayor
- Saginaw
  - Sheriff
  - District Attorney
  - County Clerk
  - Clerk of Circuit Court
Eligible Counties and Elections:
- Copiah
  - Election Commissioner
- Marshall
  - Election Commissioner
- Oktibbeha
  - Election Commissioner
- Panola
  - Election Commissioner
  - Court of Appeals
- Pike
  - Election Commissioner
- Warren
  - Election Commissioner
Eligible Counties and Elections:
- Anson
  - 1 School Board
- Lenoir
  - County Council
- Nash
  - School Board (Districts 1, 3, 5, 7, 10, 11)
- Pasquotank
  - School Board
  - County Council
- Pitt
  - School Board (Districts 3, 4, 6, 8, 9)
  - County Council
- Wilson
  - 1 School Board
Eligible Counties and Elections:
- Clark
  - County Council
  - School Board
Eligible Counties and Elections:
- Hamilton
  - Sheriff
  - District Attorney
  - County Council
Eligible Counties and Elections:
- State House 3
- State House 16
- State House 18
- State House 26
- State House 29
- State House 30
- State House 31
- State House 33
- State House 38
- State House 41
- State House 45
- State House 82
- State House 118
- State House 137
- State House 140
- State House 141
- State House 142
- State House 144
- State House 160
- State House 170
- State Senate 11
- State Senate 37
- State Senate 49
Eligible Counties and Elections:
- Charleston
  - Sheriff
  - District Attorney (9th Circuit)
  - 4 School Board Seats
- Dillon
  - Sheriff
  - District Attorney (4th Circuit)
- Marlboro
  - Sheriff
- Sumter
  - Sheriff
  - 4 School Board Seats
Eligible Counties and Elections:
- Haywood
  - 2 School Board Seats
  - Tax Assessor
Eligible Counties and Elections:
- Fort Bend
  - Sheriff
  - County Council
- Harris
  - Sheriff
  - District Attorney
  - School Board (3)
  - County Council
- Jefferson
  - Sheriff
Eligible Counties and Elections:
- Virginia Beach
  - Mayor
  - Sheriff
  - School Board
- Chesapeake City
  - 1 School Board Seat

Building Community Voices: Our 2024 Mission

Funding

Assess the likelihood of success to fund promising 501c3 voter registration and turnout initiatives that can affect election outcomes by closing registration and turnout gaps.

Support

Support grantees with data & messaging research, voter data & contact tools, central & state-based infrastructure & leadership, and training.

Empowerment

Empower underrepresented Black communities to build long-term power from the ground up, through down-ballot voter registration, turnout, education, and protection efforts.

Applicant FAQs

Learn more information about what is required and included for those who apply for the Building Community Voice Fund grant program.

Eligible 501(c)(3) voter registration and turnout initiatives and organizations, including complimentary voter education and protection programs, operating in down-ballot and local elections are encouraged to apply for NAACP Building Community Voice grants. Eligible grant applicants must be or have:
- Agree to work in prescribed BCVF voting jurisdictions.
- Be a nonprofit organization that has tax-exempt status under the Internal Revenue Code
- Have operational capacity in BCVF priority jurisdictions that are competitive and have significant Black populations.
- Have a demonstrated commitment to and capacity for successful implementation of voter registration and voter turnout activities at the local level in Black communities, including voter education and protection where needed.
- Have the interest and capacity to coordinate with national, state, and local NAACP units and other organizations with similar community objectives.
- Provide information to demonstrate staff and infrastructure available for success; strong financial controls; and processes for reporting and monitoring activities and use of funds.
Funds may be used to support leadership, management, coordination, and operations that increase the political voice and representation of the Black community through greater participation and success in local elections. Specific areas of support include voter registration and turnout and may include complementary activities in voter education and protection. Areas of support, all common to local elections and community impact are expected to fall into three categories:
- Research and data analysis to determine priority down-ballot voting jurisdictions, populations, and resonant messaging for motivating and mobilizing voters
- Central operations, including leadership and management of the grants program and voter contact programming – direct and indirect, that are directed toward down-ballot, local elections
- State-based activities and operations in the substantive areas of voter registration and turnout, possibly complemented by voter education and protection activities, and also including management and coordination, all of which are directed toward local elections significantly affecting Black communities
- BCVF elections are defined within these 18 state legislative contests:
  - AL, AR, DE, FL, GA, IL, LA, MD, MI, MS, NC, NV, OH, PA, SC, TN, TX, and VA.

A Winning Model: The Story of Shelby County

The early success of the Shelby County program helps us define the impact of investing in competitive races in both competitive and progressive counties. Our approach for 2024 is to emulate the targeted and intentional strategy used in Shelby County and use those early learnings to help inform our work across our priority states in 2024.

The Shelby County results demonstrated that targeted investment with state groups have positive effects on Black voters' daily lives, but there is still plenty of ground we can cover with a deeper and continuing commitment to the BCVF program.