Voters Not Politicians

What Voters Not Politicians does

Voters Not Politicians is a 501(c)(4) nonpartisan advocacy organization headquartered in Lansing, Michigan, founded in the aftermath of the 2016 election to pursue democracy reform through grassroots organizing, ballot initiatives, citizen lobbying, and legislative accountability. The organization serves Michigan voters across all 83 counties, with an active volunteer base that grew to 6,500 by 2018 and continues to engage thousands through programs such as Dial for Democracy (nearly 3,000 volunteers) and the Pro-Voter candidate designation program (43 of 84 applicants designated for the 2026 cycle). Its core work is organized into four functional toolboxes: Direct Democracy (ballot initiative campaigns), Citizen Lobbying (Dial for Democracy, Legislative Liaisons), Community Building (Regional Organizing Model, My City Votes), and Legislative Accountability (Pro-Democracy Scorecard, candidate endorsements).

The organization operates an interconnected portfolio of programs including My City Votes (year-round civic engagement in seven Michigan municipalities), MichiganEarlyVote.com (a verified absentee dropbox and early voting site locator across all 83 counties), the Pro-Democracy Legislative Scorecard (voting record tracking for the Michigan Legislature), the Mop Up Michigan coalition (a 2026 ballot initiative on campaign finance reform), and Represent MI (a steering committee exploring proportional representation). Underlying technology is built entirely on commodity advocacy-stack tooling — EveryAction CRM, FastAction/NGP VAN for forms and payments, Mobilize.us for events, and Google Analytics — with no proprietary technology, patents, or AI/ML components disclosed.

The business model is grassroots donation-funded. The organization accepts individual contributions at tiered levels from $5 to $250+ and custom amounts, including monthly recurring options; contributions are not federally tax-deductible. Revenue is not publicly disclosed. The organization formed a family of entities including the Voters Education Fund, a related 501(c)(3) that houses charitable voter-education programs such as My City Votes and MichiganEarlyVote.com, separating them from the 501(c)(4) advocacy entity. The organization is governed by a bipartisan board and has no parent company or institutional venture or private equity backing.

Name

Voters Not Politicians

Legal name

Voters Not Politicians

Website

https://votersnotpoliticians.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Voters Not Politicians is a Michigan-based 501(c)(4) nonprofit advocacy organization that runs grassroots democracy reform campaigns — including ballot initiatives, citizen lobbying, voter education, and legislative accountability — serving Michigan voters across all 83 counties.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Civic Advocacy and Democracy Reform

NAICS

Political Organizations (813940), Social Advocacy Organizations (8133), Human Rights Organizations (813311)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Democracy, Voting Rights & Civic Participation Advocacy (BPAGAFAJ)

akta.pro secondary industry

Civic Education & Community Engagement (Voting, Local Government) (EDAAAFAC)

Keywords

• Grassroots advocacy organizing
• Ballot initiative campaigns
• Voter education outreach
• Citizen lobbying programs
• Civic engagement nonprofit

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Grassroots Donations: Individual contributions from supporters who donate through the website, at events, or via direct mail. The organization is powered by grassroots donors who fund democracy reform programs.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Voters Not Politicians is a 501(c)(4) nonpartisan advocacy organization that runs ballot-initiative campaigns, citizen-lobbying programs, voter-education partnerships, and legislative-accountability programs in Michigan. It mobilizes a volunteer network of thousands across all 83 Michigan counties to advance democracy-reform policy through direct democracy, community building, citizen lobbying, and legislative accountability, and operates related voter tools such as MichiganEarlyVote.com.

Product overview

Voters Not Politicians is a nonpartisan advocacy organization offering a comprehensive suite of democracy reform programs centered around four core toolbox areas: Direct Democracy, Citizen Lobbying, Community Building, and Legislative Accountability. The organization operates multiple interconnected programs including My City Votes (voter education partnerships), Dial for Democracy (legislative call alerts), Legislative Liaison Program (direct lawmaker engagement), Pro-Democracy Legislative Scorecard (voting record tracking), Pro-Voter Approved Candidates (candidate vetting), and MichiganEarlyVote.com (election resource tool). The organization also leads coalition campaigns including Mop Up Michigan (campaign finance reform) and Represent Michigan (electoral system reform). Core technology platforms include EveryAction CRM, FastAction for volunteer/donor management, and Mobilize.us for events. The Voters Education Fund, a related entity, operates My City Votes and MichiganEarlyVote.com programs.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Voters Education Fund: Associated nonprofit focused on civic engagement and voter education programs including the My City Votes community-focused voter education and engagement program.
• Mop Up Michigan

Products and services

• Pro-Voter Approved Candidates Candidate evaluation and endorsement program where volunteers and staff assess Michigan candidates for their commitment to democracy reform through questionnaires, public statement analysis, voting record reviews, and community viability assessments; approved candidates receive the VNP Pro-Voter designation for the 2026 election cycle.

Named customers1 record

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Partnerships

18 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Promote the Vote 2022 CoalitioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLed coalition effort in 2022 to collect signatures and pass constitutional amendment protecting and expanding voting rights in Michigan. VNP collected over 170,000 signatures and knocked over 125,000 doors.
• Michigan AFL-CIOcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPart of the Represent MI steering committee working on proportional representation reform in Michigan.
• Promote The VotecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoalition partner in Represent MI steering committee working on proportional representation reform.
• Activate DetroitcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoalition partner in Represent MI steering committee working on proportional representation reform.
• ACLU of MichiganmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoalition partner fighting documentary proof of citizenship (DPOC) voting restrictions and voter suppression initiatives.
• Common Cause MichiganmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoalition partner in statewide effort to defeat voter suppression petitions.
• 25 DemosmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoalition partner in anti-voter suppression coalition.
• 4 MichiganmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoalition partner in anti-voter suppression coalition.
• All Voting is Local ActionmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoalition partner fighting for voting access and against restrictive voting requirements.
• Detroit Disability PowermajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoalition partner focusing on disability access in voting and elections.
• NAACPmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoalition partner representing Black voter interests in democracy protection efforts.
• Michigan VoicesmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoalition partner in voter advocacy and democracy reform efforts.
• Progress MichiganmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoalition partner providing polling and communications support for democracy initiatives.
• Vote RidersmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoalition partner helping voters obtain IDs needed to vote.
• Detroit VotescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Detroit Votes during COVID-19 pandemic to accelerate voter education and combat misinformation about voting options, reaching Detroit voters with information about early voting options and secure drop boxes.
• Voters Education FundcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVoters Not Politicians formed a family of organizations including the Voters Education Fund, which runs the My City Votes community-focused voter education program.
• Indivisible Metro DetroitmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoalition partner amplifying pro-voter messaging and coordinating on anti-voter suppression efforts.
• Faith, Family, and Freedom CoalitionminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerConservative coalition invited Mop Up Michigan to present anti-corruption message, demonstrating bipartisan support for money out of politics initiative.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• FairVote: Electoral reform organization focused on ranked-choice voting and proportional representation. Directly comparable to VNP's Represent Michigan steering committee work on proportional representation and shared redistricting expertise via board member David Daley.
• RepresentUs: National anti-corruption and democracy reform organization focused on passing state and local anti-gerrymandering and campaign-finance ballot measures. Directly comparable to VNP in tactic (state ballot initiatives on redistricting and money-in-politics) and goal (structural democracy reform).
• Promote the Vote (Michigan): Michigan voting rights ballot-initiative committee that VNP co-led in 2022 to pass the constitutional amendment expanding voting rights. Directly comparable as a Michigan-focused voting rights ballot campaign coalition with overlapping volunteer networks.
• ACLU of Michigan: State-level civil liberties and voting rights organization listed as a VNP coalition partner in anti-DPOC and voting access work. Comparable in Michigan-focused advocacy, litigation, and coalition-based voter protection campaigns.

Broad incumbents

• Common Cause: National nonpartisan government accountability and voting rights advocacy organization. Comparable to VNP in mission (campaign finance reform, voting rights, redistricting) but operates nationally across all 50 states rather than focusing on a single state like VNP does in Michigan.
• League of Women Voters: Centennial civic engagement organization with strong state and local affiliate structures (including a Michigan affiliate). Comparable to VNP in promoting voter education, ballot access, and civic participation through grassroots volunteer infrastructure.

Emerging players

• Indivisible: National grassroots progressive advocacy network with active Michigan affiliates (Indivisible Metro Detroit is a VNP coalition partner). Comparable in volunteer-driven citizen lobbying model, election protection work, and anti-voter-suppression coalition campaigns.
• Progress Michigan: Michigan progressive advocacy and communications organization listed as a VNP coalition partner providing polling and communications support. Comparable as a Michigan-focused advocacy group running parallel democracy and accountability campaigns with overlapping donor bases.

Regional players

• Michigan League of Conservation Voters: Michigan state-level advocacy organization (board member Lisa Wozniak serves as ED). Comparable in operating as a Michigan-focused 501(c)(4) advocacy entity running electoral accountability, lobbying, and coalition campaigns, but focused on environmental rather than democracy reform issues.

Others

• Public Policy Associates, Inc. Lansing-based public policy research firm founded and chaired by VNP board member Jeff Padden. Comparable as a Michigan public policy organization in the same Lansing civic ecosystem, though focuses on research/consulting rather than ballot advocacy.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xbsky.app/profile/notpoliticians.bsky.social
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCKQWfpebku7BRYncTR5WCtA
• Facebookfacebook.com/Votersnotpoliticians
• Instagraminstagram.com/votersnotpoliticians

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Subsidiaries1 record

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 Voters Not Politicians