What Townhall Project does

Townhall Project is a U.S. nonprofit civic engagement organization founded in early 2017 by a small group of organizers and activists. The organization operates a web-based platform that aggregates, curates, and publishes a comprehensive public database of town halls and other public events held by members of the U.S. Congress and, increasingly, state legislators. The platform's core technology is a WebGL-powered interactive map built on Firebase, allowing constituents to search and filter events by congressional district, event type (Town Hall, Empty Chair Town Hall, Tele-Town Hall, Campaign Town Hall, Office Hours), and lawmaker type (U.S. Senator, U.S. Representative). Supporting features include a district-level email subscription service, a crowdsourced event submission portal, and a YouTube-integrated video upload capability for sharing town hall recordings.

The business model is entirely non-commercial: the platform is free to all users, with no pricing for any feature. Townhall Project is funded exclusively through grassroots small-dollar donations processed via ActBlue and selective foundation grants pursued through direct outreach. The organization is volunteer-driven across research, communications, and web development functions, with only four paid staff members on its leadership team (Executive Director Nathan Williams, Lead Web Developer Megan Riel-Mehan, National Organizing Director Jenita Igwealor, and Deputy Organizing Director Zoë Tapert). Go-to-market is community-led: volunteer researchers across the country identify and publish congressional events, users subscribe to district-level alerts, and distribution is amplified through a strategic alliance with the Indivisible progressive activist network, formalized through a 2020-2021 merger announcement.

The customer base consists of American constituents and activists seeking to engage face-to-face with their elected representatives, with a secondary segment of federal and state lawmakers who benefit from increased visibility of their public events. As of 2021, Townhall Project announced it is joining forces with Indivisible, signaling a structural shift from independent operation toward integration within a larger national civic engagement infrastructure.

Name

Townhall Project

Legal name

Town Hall Project

Website

https://townhallproject-86312.firebaseapp.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Townhall Project is a volunteer-driven U.S. nonprofit that operates a free web platform aggregating congressional and state legislator town hall events, serving American constituents seeking face-to-face engagement with their elected representatives.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Civic Engagement Platform

NAICS

Social Advocacy Organizations (8133), Civic and Social Organizations (81341)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Democracy, Voting Rights & Civic Participation Advocacy (BPAGAFAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Civic Education & Community Engagement (Voting, Local Government) (EDAAAFAC), City Clerk/Records, Elections & Civic Engagement (BPAIACAB)

Keywords

• Civic engagement platform
• Town hall tracker
• Congressional events database
• Grassroots organizing tools
• Legislative event mapping

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Grassroots Donations: Town Hall Project relies entirely on grassroots donations from hundreds of individual donors. The organization accepts one-time donations via ActBlue and larger ongoing donations or foundation grants via direct contact. No commercial revenue streams.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Townhall Project operates a free public web platform that aggregates, researches, and publishes a comprehensive database of town hall and public events hosted by U.S. federal and selected state lawmakers. Constituents use the platform's interactive map, district-based email subscriptions, event submission portal, and YouTube-integrated video sharing feature to find, attend, and document face-to-face meetings with their elected representatives across all 50 states.

Product overview

Town Hall Project is a civic engagement platform consisting of a single unified web application that provides multiple interconnected services: an interactive WebGL map and searchable database of town hall events with federal and state lawmakers, an email subscription service for personalized district-based alerts, an event submission portal for crowdsourced discovery, and a YouTube-integrated video sharing feature for recording and sharing town hall content. The platform enables constituents to find, attend, and document face-to-face conversations with their elected representatives across all event types including town halls, empty chair events, office hours, tele-town halls, and campaign events.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Town Hall Event Database & Interactive Map A searchable database and WebGL-powered interactive map displaying town halls and public events with U.S. Senators, U.S. Representatives, and state lawmakers, filterable by event type (Town Hall, Empty Chair Town Hall, Tele-Town Hall, Campaign Town Hall, Office Hours) and lawmaker type. Built for constituents and activists across all 50 states.
• Event Subscription & District Alert Service Email notification service that delivers personalized town hall event updates for users' specific congressional representatives and selected state legislative districts. Users can sign up to receive alerts for one or multiple districts.
• Event Submission Platform A crowdsourced submission tool that lets constituents report town hall and public events they discover, expanding the database through volunteer contributions.
• Town Hall Video Sharing YouTube-integrated video upload feature allowing constituents to share recordings of town hall events they attend, making civic content publicly accessible.
• State Legislature Research Program Expanded research capability tracking state-level legislative events, extending the platform beyond federal elected officials to include state House and Senate district events in selected states such as Oregon.

Quantifiable outcome

• Founded in early 2017 as a response to the need for accessible congressional event information

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• IndivisiblecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Town Hall Project announced it is joining forces with Indivisible in 2021. This is a merger/alliance between two civic engagement organizations with aligned progressive missions. The organizations will work together to expand civic engagement opportunities and activist resources for constituents nationwide.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• OpenStates: Tracks state legislators, bills, and legislative activity across all 50 states. Comparable as a transparency and civic data platform focused on elected officials, with similar crowdsourced data methodology.
• Countable: Civic engagement platform that lets users learn about legislation, contact their representatives, and track how lawmakers vote. Directly comparable as a digital tool connecting constituents to Congress.
• 5Calls: Nonpartisan civic engagement app that helps constituents contact their representatives by phone. Referenced directly on the Townhall Project site as a complement for constituents without in-person events, serving the same civic participation use case.
• RepresentUs: Nonpartisan anti-corruption and civic reform organization. Comparable as a mission-driven nonprofit pushing for greater government accountability and constituent voice.
• League of Women Voters: Long-standing nonpartisan civic organization promoting voter participation and constituent engagement. Comparable as a nonprofit civic engagement platform, though focused more on elections than ongoing town halls.
• MoveOn: Progressive civic engagement and mobilization organization. Comparable as a digital-first activist platform organizing constituents around political action, aligned in progressive leanings.
• Common Cause: Nonpartisan government accountability and civic participation nonprofit. Comparable as an advocacy organization promoting democratic participation and government transparency.
• Indivisible: Progressive grassroots civic engagement organization and announced merger partner. Indivisible shares Townhall Project's mission of constituent-representative engagement and operates local activist groups across the country, making it the most directly comparable peer.

Broad incumbents

• ProPublica: Independent investigative journalism organization covering government accountability. Comparable in spirit as a transparency-focused nonprofit informing the public about elected officials, though it operates via journalism rather than events.
• ACLU: Large national nonprofit advocating for civil liberties and civic rights. Comparable as a broader civic advocacy organization, though not focused on the specific town hall / constituent engagement use case.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/townhallproject
• Xx.com/townhallproject
• Facebookfacebook.com/town.hall.project

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

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 Townhall Project