Media

Blog

The Voter’s Speakeasy featuring unbiased reporting and insight into life at Vote Smart from our staff, interns, and volunteers.

Project Vote Smart: Experience and Lessons Learned

2013 March 07

Vote Smart exists to help citizens and organizations trying to provide citizens with easy access to abundant, accurate, relevant information about those who govern or those who wish to replace those who do.


To that end, a Voter’s Self-Defense System was envisioned, a system that provides citizens with detailed applications of employment for each elected official or candidate. Information in these applications focuses on six basic categories:

  • Biographies

  • Voting Records

  • Issue Positions

  • Special Interest Ratings

  • Public Statements

  • Campaign Finances


Data collected is provided in four basic ways:

  • Website (www.votesmart.org)

  • Toll-free Voter’s Research Hotline – 888-VoteSmart

  • Various publications – Voter’s Self-Defense Manual, U.S. Government Owner’s Manual, Reporter’s Source Book, On Common Ground

  • VoteEasy: An interactive data visualization


Board members join with a political enemy and understand that no funds will be accepted from any organizations lobbying for a cause or supporting or opposing any candidates.


Over 400 staff members and almost 8000 interns and full-time volunteers have committed from 2 weeks to 2 years to collect, maintain and distribute the data over the past 20 years. They now work primarily at a research headquarters (the Great Divide Ranch) in the Montana Rockies, and at offices affiliated with the Annette Strauss Institute for Civic Life at the University of Texas-Austin.


Important Statistics


In 2012, 90% of Vote Smart’s record $1.3 million dollars in contributions came from 25,784 supporting citizens and organizations dependent upon Vote Smart data.


The Vote Smart website had 7.3 million unique users during the ...

Read More

Tags

More Posts

Show Me the Money!

2008 March 11 - Tucson

Help us stay free for all your Fellow Americans

Just $5 from everyone reading this would do it.

1
Select an amount
2
How often
3
Payment details

Thank You!

You are about to be redirected to a secure checkout page.

Please note:

The total order amount will read $0.01. This is a card processor fee. Please know that a recurring donation of the amount and frequency that you selected will be processed and initiated tomorrow. You may see a one-time charge of $0.01 on your statement.

Continue to secure page »

1
Select an amount
2
How often
3
Payment details