What Power California does

Power California is a statewide, multi-racial civic engagement nonprofit operating as a 501(c)(3) public charity in California, United States. Formed from the merger of Mobilize The Immigrant Vote and YVote, the organization mobilizes young people of color (Black, Latinx, AAPI, Native, ages 16-25) and immigrant and refugee families through voter registration, get-out-the-vote phone banking, leadership training, narrative power building, and ballot measure advocacy. Its eight core programs include an annual Youth Poll research series (2018-2025), the Vote at 16 statewide coalition, the Narrative Power Building initiative with Million Voters Project, the Schools and Communities First (Proposition 15) coalition campaign, voter registration and pre-registration services, leadership training that has reached over 7,000 young leaders, a cultural poster gallery, and voter engagement campaigns that have produced more than 609,000 voter conversations.

The organization's underlying technology footprint is minimal: the public surface consists of a Squarespace-hosted website, an embedded Rock the Vote voter registration widget, and standard organic social channels (Facebook, Instagram, X/Twitter). Phone banking operations are conducted from a call center in the Boyle Heights neighborhood of Los Angeles, supplemented by on-the-ground community partners across urban, suburban, and rural California geographies including Los Angeles, the Central Valley, and the Bay Area. Strategic distribution partnerships include Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) for pre-registration and civics programs, plus coalition ties with CultureStrike and the Black Alliance for Just Immigration.

Power California's revenue model is donation-based rather than commercial. As a 501(c)(3), the organization accepts charitable contributions from individuals and participates in employer matching gift programs; it does not sell products or services and provides voter registration resources, educational materials, and leadership training at no cost to participants. It is led by Executive Director Luis Sanchez, with no disclosed institutional investment, private equity, venture capital, or parent entity ownership, and no publicly disclosed financial figures (revenue, operating budget, donor concentration) in the source materials.

Name

Power California

Legal name

Power California

Website

https://powercalifornia.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Power California is a California-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit that mobilizes young voters of color and immigrant families through voter registration, phone banking, leadership training, the annual Youth Poll series, and ballot measure advocacy campaigns such as Vote at 16 and Proposition 15.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Civic Engagement and Advocacy

NAICS

Social Advocacy Organizations (8133), Civic and Social Organizations (81341), Human Rights Organizations (813311)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Democracy, Voting Rights & Civic Participation Advocacy (BPAGAFAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Youth Leadership, Civic Education & Service-Learning Nonprofits (BPAGADAI), Student Government & Leadership Programs (EDALAHAA), Civic Education & Community Engagement (Voting, Local Government) (EDAAAFAC)

Keywords

• Civic engagement
• Voter registration
• Youth organizing
• Leadership training
• Advocacy campaigns

Headquarters

HQ city

Oakland

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Contributions: Power California operates as a 501(c)(3) non-partisan, non-taxable public charity. The organization accepts charitable donations from individuals, and many organizations match their employees' charitable giving through matching gift programs. Donations support the organization's civic engagement, voter registration, and youth leadership programs throughout California.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Power California is a nonprofit civic engagement organization that mobilizes young people of color and their families in California through voter registration, get-out-the-vote campaigns, leadership training programs, and cultural strategy initiatives. It conducts annual Youth Polls research, advocates for policies such as Vote at 16 and Schools and Communities First (Prop 15), and coordinates a statewide network of community partners, phone banking operations, and artist collaborations to drive civic participation.

Product overview

Power California is a statewide multi-racial civic engagement nonprofit organization (501(c)(3)) that operates as a unified platform of programs rather than a modular software product. The organization combines voter registration and engagement tools, annual youth polling research, leadership training programs, and cultural campaigns. Core offerings include online voter registration resources, the Youth Polls research series spanning 2018-2025, the Vote at 16 advocacy campaign, Narrative Power Building initiative, and the Schools and Communities First (Prop 15) campaign. These programs work together to mobilize young voters of color and their families, build civic leadership, and advance policy victories for communities of color across California.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Youth Polls Annual research surveys conducted by Power California that document the priorities, concerns, and political engagement of young Californians of color across different demographic groups and regions.
• Voter Registration Tools Online voter registration platform and resources enabling young people to register to vote, pre-register as 16-17 year olds, and access voting information for California elections.
• Vote at 16 Campaign Statewide coalition and local Los Angeles initiative advocating to expand voting rights to 16 and 17 year olds in California school board and municipal elections.
• Narrative Power Building A research initiative in partnership with Million Voters Project to build narrative infrastructure for advancing multiracial democracy through story-based organizing strategies.
• Schools and Communities First (Prop 15) Campaign Coalition campaign to close corporate property tax loopholes and reclaim $12 billion annually for California schools and local communities.
• Leadership Training Programs Civic engagement and leadership development programs that have trained over 7,000 young leaders of color through workshops and community organizing programs.
• Voter Engagement and GOTV Campaigns Get-out-the-vote efforts including phone banking, texting, and in-person outreach that have reached over 609,000 voter conversations and registered over 100,000 young voters.

Quantifiable outcome

• Mobilized over 200,000 young people in civic engagement efforts
• +3 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and notable.

• Million Voters ProjectcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPower California collaborates closely with Million Voters Project on narrative infrastructure and cultural strategy initiatives. In 2023, MVP and Power California launched a joint initiative to build narrative organizing strategies to advance California's multiracial democracy vision. MVP is a coalition of powerbuilding organizations combining organizing with narrative work.
• CultureStrikecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCultureStrike partnered with Power California (then under Mobilize the Immigrant Vote) to launch 'Until We Are All Free,' a culture-led racial justice initiative in partnership with Black Alliance for Just Immigration. CultureStrike provides artistic and cultural strategy expertise.
• Black Alliance for Just ImmigrationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBAJI partnered with Power California and CultureStrike on the 'Until We Are All Free' culture-led racial justice initiative. BAJI works to advance Black immigrant rights and racial justice.
• Los Angeles Unified School DistrictnotableStrategic or Co-development PartnerLAUSD partnered with Power California on the Vote at 16 initiative. In April 2019, the LAUSD board voted to research expanding voting rights to 16 and 17-year-olds for district elections, with student leaders from LAUSD supporting the exploratory resolution.
• Local Community PartnerscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPower California coordinates with local community partners throughout California on electoral campaigns, leadership training, and voter engagement initiatives. These partners operate in urban, suburban, and rural communities throughout the state to leverage collective power.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Voto Latino: National nonprofit registering and turning out young Latino voters through culturally relevant digital campaigns. Direct peer in the youth-of-color civic engagement space with overlapping California presence.
• When We All Vote: Michelle Obama's nonpartisan voter engagement nonprofit focused on registration and turnout. Targets the same young and underrepresented voter base with comparable cultural-celebrity-driven outreach.
• Million Voters Project: California-based coalition of power-building organizations combining organizing with narrative work. Power California's named core partner on narrative infrastructure, making it both ally and a comparable coalition model.
• Rock the Vote: National nonpartisan voter registration organization targeting young voters. Power California embeds the Rock the Vote widget on its site and pursues the same youth voter mobilization mission, making it a direct functional peer despite Rock the Vote's national scope.
• NextGen America: Major youth voter mobilization 501(c)(4) founded by Tom Steyer. Targets the same 18-35 demographic with registration, turnout, and advocacy; comparable California presence and overlapping issue agenda (climate, racial justice) makes it the closest state-level competitor.
• HeadCount: Nonpartisan voter registration organization that leverages music and culture to register young voters. Closely comparable GTM motion to Power California's cultural strategy and artist collaborations, with similar age-targeted outreach.
• Mi Familia Vota: National Latino civic engagement organization with strong state chapters. Overlaps directly with Power California's immigrant and Latinx outreach and shares the multiracial youth organizing playbook.
• MOVE Texas: State-level civic engagement organization mobilizing young Texans of color through registration and leadership programs. Direct functional peer model: state-focused, youth-of-color-led, combining voter engagement with leadership training.
• New Era Colorado: State-focused youth civic engagement organization running registration, leadership, and policy advocacy. Highly comparable operating model to Power California's statewide multi-issue civic platform.

Broad incumbents

• Asian Americans Advancing Justice: National AAPI civil rights and civic participation coalition with state affiliates including California. Overlaps with Power California's AAPI voter outreach and immigrant rights agenda but operates a broader civil rights portfolio.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/PowerCANow
• Facebookfacebook.com/powercanow
• Instagraminstagram.com/powercalifornia
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/power-california

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Power California