The Healthy Democracy Fund

About Healthy Democracy Fund

The Healthy Democracy Fund (HDF) is a pooled grantmaking fund housed at – and managed by – The Tides Foundation. It partners with social justice donor networks and movement leaders focused on building a more just and representative democracy. The fund invests in civic engagement efforts by granting funds to fill urgent gaps in strategic states across the country while simultaneously building long term power in historically underrepresented communities – especially communities of color, young people, and the economically disadvantaged.

Fund Priorities

The Healthy Democracy Fund supports national movements and targeted local campaigns through more than 50 organizations that:

1) Build the enduring strength of community-led multi-issue civic engagement groups so they can break free from the boom-and-bust cycled of election-year funding and achieve the lasting gains in power and representation for their communities.

2) Proactively protect and advance pro-voter reforms in states where the gains are possible while defending against a wave of voter suppression laws targeting people of color, young voters, and other groups.

3) Ensure a fair redistricting process following the 2020 census by fighting partisan gerrymandering and ensuring district lines are drawn in ways that protect the power of communities of color and other underrepresented groups.

4) Counter disinformation campaigns that seek to sow division, create uncertainty and doubt, and reduce support for policies that can help communities thrive.

The Healthy Democracy Fund was launched in partnership with a Leadership Council – a group of donor network and movement leaders who had their “ears to the ground” on where there were gaps and urgent needs in grantmaking/fundraising in the democracy space.  The HDF Leadership Council included:

• Way to Win: A homebase for progressive donors and organizers seeking a strategic approach to political funding that wins elections, advances transformative policy, and builds lasting power in the states.
• Solidaire Network: A community of donor organizers mobilizing critical resources to the frontlines of intersectional movements for racial, climate and gender justice.
• Alliance for Youth Organizing: Grows progressive people power across America by empowering local young people’s organizations to strengthen our democracy, fix our economy, and correct injustices through on-the-ground organizing.
• Center for Popular Democracy: Works to create equity, opportunity and a dynamic democracy in partnership with high-impact base-building organizations, organizing alliances, and progressive unions.
• United We Dream: The largest immigrant youth-led network in the country leading the fight for the dignity and respect of all immigrants.

Other Networks and Organizations

Below is a partial list of other networks and organizations that are working to defend democracy and advance the rights of underrepresented communities in the democratic process:

• Movement Voter Project: MVP works to strengthen progressive power at all levels of government by helping donors – big and small – support the best and most promising local community-based organizations in key states, with a focus on youth and communities of color.
• Democracy Funders Network: DFN takes a big-picture view of the challenges facing American democracy and the approaches to solving them. We do not believe there is a silver bullet that will enable American Democracy to thrive over the next fifty years and beyond. On the contrary, many approaches will likely play a role in fixing what ails us. We help donors better understand and respond to the long-term challenges facing U.S. democracy.
• Brennan Center for Justice: Works to build an America that is democratic, just, and free – for all.
• Working Families: Works state by state and community by community to build a multiracial party of working people to transform our country.
• Fair Representation in Redistricting: Supports civic organizations and coalitions in targeted states to advance community-centered redistricting; research and mitigation strategies to promote the continued use of total population for drawing districts; and national support services to enable fair maps across states.
• Protect Democracy: A nonpartisan organization formed in late 2016 with and urgent and explicit mission: to prevent American democracy from declining into a more authoritarian form of government.