The Independent Voter Project

What The Independent Voter Project does

The Independent Voter Project (IVP) is a nonpartisan 501(c)(4) social welfare organization founded in 2006 and headquartered in San Diego, California. IVP's core function is authoring ballot measures, defending them in court, and producing media and data infrastructure to advance three structural election reforms: open nonpartisan primaries, More Choice Voting (open primaries combined with ranked choice/approval voting), and Super PAC donation caps. Its most consequential product is California's Proposition 14, the nation's first statewide Top-Two open primary, authored by IVP, passed with 54% support in June 2010, and now serving more than 40 million California voters; IVP has subsequently authored San Diego Measure K (2016) and defended Maine's Question 1 (2023). The organization also operates a 50-state voter data platform sourced from L2 voter file and state Secretary of State records, providing party affiliation, turnout, and primary access breakdowns across 217.1 million registered voters, and co-publishes the Independent Voter News (IVN) open-source news platform with its 501(c)(3) sister organization FIVE. IVP files federal court actions — five cases to date in NJ, CA, FL, and NY — and maintains a 3-0 federal court record defending Proposition 14. IVP is funded by more than 4,200 individual donors from across the political spectrum (Democrats, Republicans, Libertarians, Greens, and independents), with contributions not tax-deductible; Form 990 filings are public for fiscal years 2020-2024. The go-to-market motion is community-led, relying on petition drives, coalition organizing, voter education, digital outreach (newsletter, podcast, social media), and earned media coverage in outlets including The Guardian, NYT, Washington Post, Politico, NBC News, and USA Today.

Name

The Independent Voter Project

Legal name

Independent Voter Project

Website

https://independentvoterproject.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2006

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Independent Voter Project is a nonpartisan 501(c)(4) organization that authors ballot measures, litigates, and produces voter data to advance open primaries, ranked choice voting, and Super PAC limits in the United States.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Nonpartisan Election Reform Advocacy

NAICS

Political Organizations (813940), Marketing Research and Public Opinion Polling (541910)

akta.pro primary industry

Electoral Support & Election Observation (BPADAGAA)

Keywords

• Election reform advocacy
• Nonpartisan voter rights
• Open primary initiatives
• Voter data analytics
• Civic reform litigation

Headquarters

HQ city

San Diego

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Individual Donations: IVP is funded by more than 4,200 individual donors from across the political spectrum including Democrats, Republicans, Libertarians, Greens, and independents. The organization is a 501(c)(4) social welfare organization, and contributions are not tax-deductible as charitable donations.
2. Conference & Event Funding: IVP receives donations from participants in sponsored conferences, news, and voter education programs.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Independent Voter Project (IVP) is a nonpartisan 501(c)(4) social welfare organization that authors ballot measures, files litigation, and runs voter education programs to advance open primary elections, ranked choice voting, and campaign finance reform. It operates a 50-state voter data platform, runs the Independent Voter Podcast and the IVN news platform, and defends reform laws in court for independent-minded voters.

Product overview

The Independent Voter Project is a nonpartisan 501(c)(4) organization that operates as a reform advocacy organization rather than a traditional software product company. Its offerings consist of election reform initiatives (Open Primaries for Every Voter, More Choice Voting, End Super PACs), media platforms (The Independent Voter Podcast, IVN Independent Voter News), voter data analytics tools (Voter Data Tools with state-by-state registration and primary access data), authored legislation (Proposition 14, San Diego Measure K), and petition advocacy tools. The organization advances its mission through initiatives, litigation, and voter education.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Independent Voter News (IVN): An award-winning, open-source news platform providing unfiltered political news and policy analysis from across the political spectrum.
• The Independent Voter Podcast

Products and services

• Open Primaries for Every Voter A national reform initiative advocating for nonpartisan primary elections that allow all registered voters to participate regardless of party affiliation, addressing the exclusion of over 26 million Americans from primary elections.
• More Choice Voting An electoral reform initiative that advances open primaries combined with ranked choice or approval voting in general elections, expanding the field of viable candidates and increasing competition.
• End Super PACs A national reform initiative defending Maine's Question 1 law that caps Super PAC donations at $5,000, building the legal framework to extend the reform across all 50 states.
• The Independent Voter Podcast A nonpartisan podcast featuring reform advocates, legal scholars, elected officials, and organizers discussing election reform issues including open primaries, voter access, election law, redistricting, and ranked choice voting.
• IVN - Independent Voter News An award-winning, open-source news platform providing unfiltered political news and policy analysis from across the political spectrum, co-published with FIVE and funded by IVP.
• Voter Data Tools A comprehensive voter registration data platform providing party affiliation statistics, turnout data, and primary access information for all 50 states and DC, including interactive maps and state-by-state breakdowns.
• Proposition 14 - California Top-Two Primary Landmark California ballot measure authored by IVP that established a nonpartisan Top-Two primary system, allowing all voters to participate on a single ballot regardless of party affiliation.
• San Diego Measure K IVP-authored ballot measure passed in 2016 that eliminated San Diego's 50%+1 rule, ensuring all city races appear on the November general election ballot.

Quantifiable outcome

• 40 million+ voters now participate in open primaries through Proposition 14
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.

• FIVE (Foundation for Independent Voter Education)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIVP's sister organization focused on voter education. FIVE is a 501(c)(3) organization that co-publishes IVN.us and serves as the legal defense arm, actively defending Maine's Super PAC contribution limits in court. FIVE and IVP work together on initiatives, litigation, and voter education programs.
• Independent Voter News (IVN)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAn award-winning, open-source news platform providing unfiltered political news and analysis from across the political spectrum. Co-published by IVP and FIVE. IVP funds the platform specifically so diverse voices, including those that disagree with IVP, have a place to be heard.
• National Association of Nonpartisan ReformerscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIVP is a founding member of the National Association of Nonpartisan Reformers, a coalition of more than 30 voter rights organizations working to advance structural election reform across party lines.
• Bridge AlliancecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIVP is a founding member of the Bridge Alliance, a coalition of civic organizations working on democratic reform and governance issues.
• Open PrimariesflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoalition partner in the Polelle v. Florida Supreme Court amicus brief. Open Primaries is a national organization working to open primary elections to all voters regardless of party affiliation.
• Forward PartyflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoalition partner in Polelle v. Florida amicus brief filed at the U.S. Supreme Court in September 2025. Co-signatory on the brief challenging Florida's closed primary system.
• Florida Forward PartyflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoalition partner in Polelle v. Florida amicus brief filed at the U.S. Supreme Court in September 2025. State-level coalition partner focused on Florida's election reform.
• Peace & Shea LLPcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerLegal counsel for IVP. Chad Peace, partner at Peace & Shea LLP, serves as legal advisor to IVP and counsel of record on multiple court cases including Polelle v. Florida amicus brief. Authored San Diego's Measure K and amicus briefs in Level the Playing Field v. FEC.
• Olas MediaminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPodcast production partner for The Independent Voter Podcast. Olas Media produces and distributes the podcast across its platform.
• Nielsen MerksamercoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerLegal defense firm representing IVP in challenges to Proposition 14, including Boden v. Secretary of State and Rubin v. Bowen cases.

Scale indicators14 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Others

• National Association of Nonpartisan Reformers: Coalition of 30+ voter rights organizations advancing structural election reform, co-founded by IVP and chaired by Katherine Gehl. Comparable as the structural umbrella through which IVP coordinates multi-organization reform pushes, rather than as a competitor.
• Bridge Alliance: Coalition of civic organizations advancing democratic reform and governance, co-founded by IVP. Comparable as an ecosystem participant that aggregates IVP with peer reform organizations for joint advocacy, rather than as a direct competitor.

Direct peers

• FairVote: Leading national advocacy organization for ranked choice voting and election reform. Comparable because FairVote advances More Choice Voting (RCV) — one of IVP's three active reform pillars — and operates as a peer advocacy/data organization with overlapping donor bases and state-level campaigns.
• Open Primaries: National organization dedicated exclusively to opening primary elections to independent voters. Directly comparable to IVP because both organizations author and defend open-primary reforms, share amicus briefs (Polelle v. Florida, 2025), and target the same 15 closed-primary states.
• IndependentVoting.org: National strategy and organizing center for independent voters with chapters in 40 states, led by Jackie Salit (an IVP Reform Advisor). Directly comparable to IVP because both organizations organize the independent voter bloc, share leadership, and co-host national convenings around open primaries and ballot access.
• RepresentUs: National anti-corruption and election reform organization advocating open primaries, RCV, and small-dollar campaign financing. Comparable because RepresentUs runs state-level ballot measure campaigns, legislative advocacy, and coalition work that directly overlap with IVP's Open Primaries and End Super PACs initiatives.
• Issue One: Bipartisan political reform organization focused on campaign finance, ethics, and election integrity. Comparable because Issue One operates as a peer nonpartisan reform org with overlapping Super PAC / dark-money reform agenda and similar donor-driven 501(c)(3) structure to IVP's sister FIVE organization.
• Unite America: Nonpartisan political reform movement funding candidates and ballot measures for open primaries and ranked choice voting. Comparable because Unite America pursues the same three reform vectors as IVP (open primaries, RCV, anti-corruption) at significantly larger fundraising scale, and operates in the same state-level reform battlegrounds.

Broad incumbents

• Common Cause: One of the largest and longest-standing U.S. government accountability and election reform organizations. Comparable because Common Cause pursues open primaries, RCV, and campaign finance reform across all 50 states with significantly greater resources, providing the broad-incumbent benchmark against which smaller orgs like IVP are measured.

Emerging players

• Forward Party: New reform-oriented political party co-founded by Andrew Yang and Christine Todd Whitman, advocating open primaries and RCV. Comparable as an IVP coalition partner (co-signatory on Polelle v. Florida SCOTUS amicus brief, 2025), representing a party-track route to the same reform goals IVP pursues through ballot measures and litigation.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCtT3loFk1B2BC3R3R31TI3w
• Xx.com/ivn
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/independent-voter-project

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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 The Independent Voter Project