The Democracy Alliance

What The Democracy Alliance does

The Democracy Alliance is a private, membership-based donor network headquartered in Washington, DC. Founded in 2005 by Rob Stein, it operates as a 501(c)(4) social welfare organization that convenes approximately 120 members — philanthropic foundations, high-net-worth individual political donors, and labor unions — to coordinate strategic investment in progressive causes. Each member pays $35,000 in annual dues and commits to sending at least $200,000 annually to progressive policy organizations, with the DA acting as a convener, expert advisor, and recommender rather than a direct grantmaker.

The DA's core offering is community access: two flagship in-person annual convenings, regular virtual briefings, a member listserv, curated expert-staff investment guidance, and event-based programming such as the Bloody Sunday 60th anniversary trip to Selma. Surrounding this core, the DA has stood up a portfolio of dedicated funds and incubated institutions including the Center for American Progress, Media Matters, the Strategic Victory Fund, the Climate Equity Action Fund, the Black Civic Engagement Fund, the Latino Engagement Fund, and the Climate Fund. Coalition-based field programs (Battleground New York and Battleground California) channel member capital into integrated ground operations combining unions, the Working Families Party, Indivisible, and Planned Parenthood Votes.

The revenue model is recurring subscription-based membership dues of $35,000 per member per year on annual billing, supplemented by ancillary convening-related contributions; the organization does not publicly disclose its total budget. Go-to-market is community-led and event-driven: members are referred by existing members, recruited through foundation and union networks, and continuously engaged through flagship convenings, the 10-year strategic vision (2022-2032), and President Pamela Shifman's thought leadership in major outlets. Since founding, DA-aligned capital has funneled more than $2 billion into progressive causes.

Name

The Democracy Alliance

Legal name

Democracy Alliance

Website

https://democracyalliance.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2005

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Democracy Alliance is a private, membership-based progressive donor network founded in 2005, convening approximately 120 foundations, individual philanthropists, and labor unions who pay $35,000 annually and commit at least $200,000 each to progressive causes, cumulatively deploying over $2 billion.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Progressive Donor Network

NAICS

Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321), Human Rights Organizations (813311), Social Advocacy Organizations (8133)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Public Charities & Grantmaking Intermediaries (BPAGAKAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Democracy, Voting Rights & Civic Participation Advocacy (BPAGAFAJ), Social Justice & Human Rights Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAN)

Keywords

• Progressive donor network
• Political philanthropy coordination
• Membership convening services
• Strategic giving advisory
• Electoral infrastructure funding

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: The organization collects annual dues from its approximately 120 members. Each member pays $35,000 in annual dues.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The Democracy Alliance is a private membership-based donor network that convenes foundations, individual political philanthropists, and labor unions to coordinate strategic investment in progressive causes. Members pay annual dues of $35,000 and commit to sending at least $200,000 to groups working to advance progressive policies, gaining access to expert staff guidance, two flagship annual convenings, virtual briefings, and curated introductions to movement leaders and elected officials. The organization has funneled more than $2 billion into liberal causes since its founding in 2005.

Product overview

The Democracy Alliance is a donor network (not a technology product company) that connects high-net worth individuals, foundations, labor unions, movement leaders, and elected officials to coordinate progressive philanthropy. The organization operates through strategic funds (Strategic Victory Fund, Climate Equity Action Fund), initiated organizations (Center for American Progress, Media Matters), and programs (Battleground New York, Battleground California). Members receive access to expert staff guidance, annual convenings, and virtual briefings. The DA has funneled over $2 billion into liberal causes since 2005.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Annual Convenings
• Virtual Briefings and Member Listservs
• Expert Staff Strategic Guidance

Quantifiable outcome

• More than $2 billion funneled into progressive causes since 2005
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

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

15 partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Meadow FundminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2026DA Partner organization that began funding in the South in 2020 as part of commitment to racial justice. Kendra Fox-Davis of Meadow Fund invests in Mississippi alongside DA recommendations.
• Climate & Clean Energy FundminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2026DA Partner organization investing in Mississippi. Zakiya Johnson Lord of the Climate & Clean Energy Fund is a DA Partner focused on Southern climate and democracy work.
• Ohio Organizing CollaborativecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 29 April 2026DA issued statement of solidarity after FBI raid on the organization. OOC has helped Ohioans register and exercise their right to vote for nearly two decades.
• Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 27 April 2026DA stands in full solidarity with SPLC following Trump's administration's politicized indictment. SPLC is one of the nation's oldest civil rights organizations fighting white supremacist hate.
• Open Society FoundationscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 25 September 2025DA issued statement of solidarity with Open Society Foundations following reports of DOJ plans to investigate the organization. OSF is described as 'a beacon for democracy, rights, and freedom for all.'
• Black Voters MattercoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 March 2025Black Voters Matter is a DA Partner and co-convenor of the Bloody Sunday 60th anniversary trip. Co-founded by LaTosha Brown, the organization works to increase political power in marginalized, predominantly Black communities through voter engagement and mobilization.
• The Alabama AlliancecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 March 2025A coalition of individual donors and foundations committed to advancing equity and opportunity for all Alabamians. Monica Riley serves as Executive Director. Co-convened the Bloody Sunday 60th anniversary trip with DA and Black Voters Matter.
• SEIU (Service Employees International Union)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 2 September 2024Major labor union partner. SEIU President April Verrett co-authored a Labor Day op-ed with DA President Pamela Shifman on the importance of unions to democracy.
• Working Families PartycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Progressive political party that is part of the Battleground New York and Battleground California coalitions funded by DA. The partnership combines community organizing, activist groups, labor unions, and progressive political party infrastructure.
• Battleground New YorkcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Coalition that knocked on 800,000+ doors and registered 25,000+ voters in NY. Includes local unions, Working Families Party, Indivisible, and Planned Parenthood Votes. DA funding helped enable this infrastructure.
• Battleground CaliforniacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Western counterpart to Battleground New York. Raised more than $5 million in the 2024 cycle. Part of DA's strategy to build durable progressive infrastructure in traditionally blue states.
• Climate Equity Action FundcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Innovative fund launched by DA that helped win critical governorships across the Midwest in 2022, with profound impact on democracy.
• Strategic Victory FundcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022DA-launched fund that helped win critical governorships across the Midwest in 2022. Part of DA's track record of innovation and impact.
• Center for American ProgresscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2016Major progressive think tank that DA helped stand up as core infrastructure. One of the organizations DA points to as a key accomplishment.
• Media MatterscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2005Progressive media monitoring organization that DA helped launch as core infrastructure for the progressive movement.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• New Venture Fund: A progressive fiscal sponsor and grantmaking intermediary that incubates and funds advocacy projects; comparable as a vehicle for channeling donor funds into progressive causes and movement infrastructure.
• Tides Foundation: A major progressive philanthropic intermediary that manages donor-advised funds and grants to advocacy and social justice nonprofits; comparable in its grantmaking intermediation and progressive focus, though structured as a 501(c)(3).
• Sixteen Thirty Fund: A progressive 501(c)(4) donor intermediary that pools contributions from individual donors and foundations to fund progressive advocacy and policy organizations—the closest structural analog to Democracy Alliance.
• Arabella Advisors: A consulting and fiscal sponsor firm that advises progressive donors and manages philanthropic funds targeting progressive policy—directly comparable in coordinating donor capital toward social-change outcomes.

Broad incumbents

• Ford Foundation: One of the largest progressive foundations in the U.S.; comparable as a major progressive institutional funder, though operating as a traditional private foundation rather than a donor-membership network.
• Open Society Foundations: The largest private progressive donor network globally, founded by George Soros; vastly larger scale but comparable in pooling donor capital to support democracy, rights, and progressive causes—DA is a solidarity partner.
• Emerson Collective: A progressive donor-advised entity backed by Laurene Powell Jobs funding education, immigration, climate, and democracy initiatives—comparable as a high-net-worth progressive funding vehicle with comparable scope and ambition.

Others

• Brennan Center for Justice: A nonpartisan democracy and voting rights policy and advocacy organization that is a likely recipient of DA-coordinated funding; comparable in its core focus on democracy, voting rights, and civic participation.
• League of Women Voters: A long-established civic participation and voting rights organization; comparable as a democracy and civic engagement organization that DA members fund, though operating as a 501(c)(3) membership organization rather than a donor intermediary.

Emerging players

• Chan Zuckerberg Initiative: A high-capacity progressive donor-advised entity; comparable in channeling founder wealth into advocacy and democracy initiatives, though broader in scope (education, science, justice) and structured as an LLC.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/democracyalliance
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/democracy-alliance

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 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 Democracy Alliance