The Alianza Center is a left-of-center nonprofit organization that engages in voter registration drives for, and provides social services to, Puerto Ricans and the Hispanic community in Orlando, Florida. It is the sister organization of Alianza for Progress, an advocacy group that funds campaigns in support of Democratic Party candidates. ^{1 2}

In October 2022, the Alianza Center filed a lawsuit alongside other left-of-center groups challenging Florida’s Senate Bill 7050. The lawsuit criticizes the provisions imposing penalties on third-party voter registration groups for mishandling voter registrations and mail-in ballots, claiming that because such groups tend to focus on ethnic minorities, it is racist to impose the penalties. ³

Background

Based in Orlando, Florida, the Alianza Center was founded in 2018 in response to Hurricane Maria to provide social services to Puerto Ricans and other Latino people displaced by the storm and to recruit them to engage in environmentalist advocacy. It is the 501(c)(3) arm of Alianza for Progress, which is also based in Florida and engages in voter mobilization campaigns that target Latino communities and funds Democratic party candidate campaigns. ^{4 1 2}

The Alianza Center bases its advocacy on the idea that global warming and insufficient environmentalist advocacy are to blame for the severity of Hurricane Maria and other natural disasters. ² It organizes the Resilience Hub Network, which is a coalition consisting of over 50 Florida-based nonprofit organizations that provide social services to ethnic minority, immigrant, and LGBT communities. Organizers from the Resilience Hub Network state it uses the identity politics concept of intersectionality to determine how it will provide resources to individuals in response to natural disasters. ⁵

Activities

The Alianza Center was fundraising with a goal of $21,000 by the end of 2023 to create local chapters across the state of Florida that would target youth and senior involvement. As of July 2024, it had raised $316 on Democratic-aligned funding site ActBlue towards the goal. ⁶

The Alianza Center hosts a summer camp for children in kindergarten through 12th grade that includes activities promoting “civic engagement,” “social engagement,” and environmental activism. ⁷

Voter Mobilization

In October 2022, the Alianza Center hosted a “Salsa to the Polls” event at the Osceola County Supervisor of Elections Office to support its voter mobilization efforts to increase voter participation in the Puerto Rican community. The event included a caravan of decorated cars that stopped along early voting locations where participants danced to attempt to gather attention from Puerto Ricans in the area and recruit them to vote. Organizers stated that they were targeting Puerto Ricans who had recently moved to Central Florida following Hurricane Maria, claiming they were not knowledgeable about how to engage in the voting process. ⁸

In 2023, the Alianza Center received a $300,000 grant from the Southern Poverty Law Center through its Vote Your Voice initiative that funds organizations engaging in voter mobilization efforts in ethnic minority communities. The funding was awarded to hire eight to 12 canvassers by June 2024 to go to community events, colleges, and churches in Latino communities to increase voter registration and vote-by-mail participation among young people as well as to increase membership. It was also awarded to fund Alianza’s political advocacy “listening sessions.” ⁹

Florida Senate Bill 7050

In May 2023, the Alianza Center filed a lawsuit alongside the Florida chapter of the NAACP, the Equal Ground Education Fund, Voters of Tomorrow Action, Disability Rights Florida, Alianza for Progress, UnidosUS, and the Florida chapter of the Alliance for Retired Americans claiming Florida’s Senate Bill 7050 violates the First and Fourteenth Amendments and is racist. The lawsuit is critical of the bill’s provisions that require third-party voter registration organizations to renew registration each election, and provisions that increase the fines and criminal penalties for incorrectly returned applications and when third-party groups retain voter information. ¹⁰

It claims these provisions deter individuals seeking to participate in third-party voter registration and increase the costs of organizations to train individuals. It also argues that it would be racist to enforce these provisions since they would allegedly disproportionately impact ethnic minorities. ³

Leadership

Johanna Lopez is the executive director of the Alianza Center. She began her career as a Spanish teacher in Orange County, Florida, and was appointed to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation‘s Teacher Advisory Committee after organizing a voter registration drive through her school’s Hispanic Honor Society chapter and winning several awards for her activism. In 2018, Lopez was elected to the Orange County School Board, and in 2022 to the Florida State House of Representatives as a member of the Democratic Party. ¹¹

Financials

In 2022, the Alianza Center reported receiving $1.04 million in revenue and $1.01 million in total expenses, including $544,987 in salaries and compensation for employees. ¹²

1. “Alianza for Progress Independent Expenditures.” OpenSecrets. Accessed July 22, 2024. https://www.opensecrets.org/political-action-committees-pacs/alianza-for-progress/C90017815/independent-expenditures/2018.
2. Resilience Hub Network. Accessed July 22, 2024. https://alianzacenter.org/latino-resilience-hub-network/.
3. Florida State Conference of Branches and Youth Units of the NAACP; Equal Ground Education Fund; Voters of Tomorrow Action, Inc.; Disability Rights Florida; Alianza for Progress; Alianza Center; UnidosUS; and Florida Alliance for Retired Americans v. Cord Byrd, Ashley Moody, et al, Democracy Docket (UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA TALLAHASSEE DIVISION 2023).
4. “Alianza.” Alianza for Progress. Accessed July 22, 2024. https://alianza.org/alianza/.
5. Prieur, Danielle. “Alianza Network Is Preparing to Respond to the I-4 Corridor Post-Hurricane.” WUSF, April 4, 2024. https://www.wusf.org/weather/2024-04-04/alianza-center-resilience-hub-network-preparing-respond-i-4-corridor-post-hurricane.
6. “Alianza 21 Kickoff.” ActBlue. Accessed July 22, 2024. https://secure.actblue.com/donate/alianza21kickoff.
7. “Summer, Cameras, Action! 2024.” Summer Camp 2024 – Alianza Center. Accessed July 22, 2024. https://alianzacenter.org/summer-camp-2024/.
8. Geggis, Anne. “‘Salsa to the Polls’ Aims to Boost Latino and Hispanic Voting.” Florida Politics – Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government., October 31, 2022. https://floridapolitics.com/archives/567289-salsa-to-the-polls-aims-to-boost-latino-and-hispanic-voting/.
9. Sonnenberg, Rhonda. “Vote Your Voice Florida: Student Organization Trains Tomorrow’s Leaders.” Southern Poverty Law Center, December 8, 2023. https://www.splcenter.org/news/2023/12/08/vote-your-voice-florida-organizations.
10. Sheehan, Brittany. “Gov. DeSantis Signs Election Reforms into Law, Elias Law Group and NAACP Sue Claiming Racism, per Usual.” redstate.com, May 25, 2023. https://redstate.com/brutalbrittany/2023/05/25/gov-desantis-signs-election-reforms-into-law-elias-law-group-and-naacp-sue-claiming-racism-per-usual-n751118
11. Powers, Scott. “Johanna López to Head Alianza Center in Orlando.” Florida Politics – Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government., January 5, 2021. https://floridapolitics.com/archives/405456-johanna-lopez-to-head-alianza-center-in-orlando/.
12. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (form 990). Alianza Center. 2022. Part I, Lines 8-18.