by Natalia Mittelstadt
The Center for Technology and Civic Life (CTCL) is allocating novel funding for rural election grants in 20 states after “Zuckerbucks” in the 2020 election sparked nationwide backlash.
Following the private funding of election administration during the 2020 presidential election, most states took sturdy steps by passing laws to prevent such funding in future elections. However, many states still allow it, and CTCL is focusing on awarding funds to rural election offices throughout the 2024 presidential election cycle.
CTCL announced on Friday its rural and non-urban electoral infrastructure grant program for 2024, which $2.5 million grants available to 20 states.
Grant applications open on August 2 for U.S. territories and the following states: Alaska, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Vermont, Washington and Wyoming.
Tiana Epps-Johnson, Founder and Executive Director of CTCL, he said in a statement The following statement was released Friday: “Unfortunately, local election boards continue to be severely underfunded after Congress last year cut Help America Vote Act funding to just $55 million nationwide. This means that most rural election boards do not receive regular funding from the federal government.”
“This program will help eligible election offices in rural and non-urban areas modernize outdated voting technology, improve voting access for rural voters, seniors and veterans, and make much-needed infrastructure improvements to increase election security and make voting easier for everyone,” Epps-Johnson said. added.
CTCL did not immediately respond to a request for comment made Monday.
The grant funds are to be used for election administration between July 31 and December 31, 2024. according to the CTCL website.
County election offices eligible for the grant are those defined as “rural” and “non-metropolitan” under U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural-Urban Continuum Codes for 2023The population of “rural” and “nonmetropolitan” counties ranges from 20,000 or more to less than 5,000. Metropolitan counties begin with a population of less than 250,000.
CTCL uses data from the United States Bureau of the Census 2022 Citizens Voting age Population and Stewards of Democracy Research Conducted by Democracy Fund to determine how much funding to award to a jurisdiction based on its population.
According to multi-level financing categories Based on the number of voting-age citizens, counties with 5,000 or fewer adult Americans can apply for a $5,000 grant, counties with 5,001 to 25,000 people can receive $20,000, counties with 25,001 to 100,000 people can receive $50,000, and counties with 100,001 to 250,000 people can apply for a $100,000 grant.
According to CTCLfinancial resources can be used for “key human, physical, and technological resources that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has determined are necessary to conduct the election.” These assets include polling stations, technical facilities, storage facilities, processing facilities, administrative facilities, voting equipment, information systems and personnel.
According to the CTCL website, unlike in 2020, this year’s grant will not come from donations from the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative.
CTCL poured about $350 million into local election offices managing the 2020 elections, with most of the funds given to the nonprofit by Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg. The nonprofit says its 2020 election donations — colloquially known as “Zuckerbucks” — were allocated ostensibly without party preference to make voting safer during the pandemic.
However, an investigation by Republicans in the House of Representatives found that less than 1% funds were spent on personal protective equipment. Most of the funds were allocated to activities encouraging voting and registration.
Although CTCL says more grants were awarded to counties won by former President Donald Trump than by President Joe Biden, the nonprofit awarded larger subsidies and more money per capita to democratic counties than to Republicans. Trump won more than five times as many counties as Biden in 2020.
Amid controversy over disproportionate resources going to Democratic jurisdictions and claims that this imbalance helped sway the election in Biden’s favor, 28 states have restricted or banned private funding of election offices, according to Capital Research Center.
In 2022, CTCL a novel project has been createdcalled the US Alliance for Election Excellence, which localities can join as members. allied prize funds to counties and municipalities through the Centers for Election Excellence program. The alliance will provide $80 million over five years “to visualize, support, and celebrate excellence in U.S. election administration,” according to CTCL.
Four counties – two in North Carolina and two in Utah – have both withdrawn with the US Alliance for Election Excellence since last year. Some county election officials have provided membership costs or time commitment as a reason for leaving.
In May, the U.S. House of Representatives Ways and Means Committee passed the End Zuckerbucks Acta bill by Rep. Claudia Tenney, R.N.Y., that would amend the IRS code to prevent 501(c)(3) nonprofits from directly or indirectly providing funding for election administration.
In March, Indiana passed a law which would amount to a ban on “Zuckerbucks 2.0,” as critics have called the U.S. Alliance for Electoral Excellence.
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Natalia Mittelstadt is a reporter at Just the News. Photo “First Time Voter” by Karri Van Kirk License: CC BY-NC 2.0.
