PUTTING COMMUNITIES BEFORE CANDIDATES

The model of parachuting into a community and mobilizing voters for a short period of time has not built power among BIPOC, immigrant, low-income, and/or young voters. To build long-term power, MVT works with community organizations to integrate civic engagement with issue advocacy throughout the entire year.

In 2020, MVT launched six regional tables called Democracy HUBS (Holistically Unifying Blocks of Solidarity) in partnership with MassVOTE, the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy (MIRA) Coalition, and Asian Pacific Islanders’ Civic Action Network (APIs CAN). The Democracy HUBS train trusted leaders, provide voter data that fuel field programs, and regrant to community-based organizations.

Each Democracy HUB is made up of:

An anchor organization that coordinates regional field programs

Emerging groups that have trusted leaders and untapped civic engagement potential.

Supporting groups that mobilize voters from specific constituencies and/or geographic areas

2023 Democracy HUBS Partner organizations

Anchor organizations

  • Brockton Interfaith Community

  • Coalition for Social Justice

  • La Colaborativa

  • Lowell Votes

  • New England United 4 Justice, NEU4J

  • Pioneer Valley Project

  • Worcester Interfaith

emerging organizations

  • Brazilian American Center Inc

  • Revere Youth in Action

  • Neighbor to Neighbor

  • YWCA Southeastern Massachusetts

  • Cambodian Mutual Assistance Association

  • Chinese Culture Connection, Inc.

  • Latinx Community Center for Empowerment

  • Marcus Anthony Hall Educational Institute, Inc.

  • Asian American Resource Workshop

  • North Shore CDC

  • Massachusetts Women of Color Coalition

  • Springfield No One Leaves/Nadie Se Mude

  • Arise For Social Justice

  • Codman Square Neighborhood Development Corporation

  • Massachusetts Senior Action Council

Supporting Organizations

  • La Comunidad

  • True Alliance Center Inc

  • Neighbors United for a Better East Boston (NUBE)

  • Reclaim Roxbury

  • Quincy Asian Resources Inc

  • Lowell Alliance

  • Jewish Alliance for Law and Social Action

  • Massachusetts Affordable Housing Alliance

  • Madison Park Development Corporation

  • Prophetic Resistance Boston

  • Coalition for a Better Acre

  • Mass Alliance of HUD Tenants

  • United Interfaith Action of Southeastern MA (UIA)

  • Brockton Workers Alliance

  • ACE

Building Power in 2020 through the Democracy HUBS

In 2020, we had a decennial census, three elections, a global pandemic, 1 million attempts, and 80,000 voter conversations. Check out our year of work in one GIF!

Through the Democracy HUBS, we contacted 54,504 voters, 71 percent of whom were BIPOC voters. These 38 organizations reached out to low-propensity voters, mostly voters of color, in a “target universe,” who turned out at a rate of 50.6 percent. The gap between the total statewide turnout of 76.0 percent and the turnout of our target universe was nearly 26 percentage points. Of voters who we contacted, 55.8 percent of voters cast a ballot, closing the gap by 20.3 percent. Two or more contacts increased the impact on turnout to 7.9 percentage points. Contacts made by Democracy HUBS leaders increased voter participation by 5.2 percentage points. Two or more contacts increased participation by 7.9 percentage points.