Non-profit

Chan Zuckerberg Advocacy

Website:

chanzuckerberg.com/%20

Location:

Redwood City, CA

Tax ID:

81-3742328

Tax-Exempt Status:

501(c)(4)

Budget (2017):

Revenue: $18,048,807
Expenses: $44,187,229
Assets: $18,869,461

Formation:

2015

President:

David Plouffe

Type:

Political grantgiving foundation

Contact InfluenceWatch with suggested edits or tips for additional profiles.

The Chan Zuckerberg Advocacy is the political arm of the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, the nonprofit foundation of Facebook billionaire Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan. The Advocacy has an educational sister group, the Chan Zuckerberg Foundation.

Chan Zuckerberg Advocacy primarily supports left-of-center political causes based in California including higher taxes, expanded housing construction, and leniency in criminal justice. In the 2020 elections, it is supporting the partial repeal of California Proposition 13, the state’s property tax cap. Mark Zuckerberg’s immigration-expansion group, FWD.us, is by far the largest recipient of grants from Chan Zuckerberg Advocacy.

Grants

Since 2018, the Chan Zuckerberg Advocacy has given 20 grants totaling $45,346,420 to numerous left-of-center PACs and political advocacy groups primarily based in California. 1

Chan Zuckerberg Advocacy has given many grants to California-based low-income housing advocates. It has given $300,000 to Affordable Housing Now, a PAC which supported Proposition 1, a ballot measure that issued $4 billion in bonds for state funding for housing projects. The Advocacy gave $200,000 to the Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment (ACCE) Action, $100,000 to California YIMBY, and $50,000 to the Non-profit Housing Association of Northern California. In 2018, Chan Zuckerberg Advocacy gave $100,000 to Yes on Measure V, which supported Measure V, a measure which would have created a $450 million state fund to construct low-income housing in San Jose. 1

Throughout 2018-2020, Chan Zuckerberg Advocacy gave $1,490,000 to Schools and Community First, an organization which advocates for the passage of the 2020 California Schools and Local Communities Funding Act, which would partially repeal Proposition 13, the state’s long-standing cap on property taxes. If passed, the bill will increase state funding to community colleges, health clinics and other local services by $12 billion annually by raising business property taxes. 12

From 2018-2019, Chan Zuckerberg Advocacy gave $510,000 to the Million Voter Project Action Fund,1 a coalition of seven nonprofits which support broadly left-of-center political goals in California, including increased education and health care spending. 3

Also from 2018-2019, Chan Zuckerberg Advocacy gave $38,601,811 to FWD.us, a left-of-center advocacy group founded by Mark Zuckerberg in 2014 that supports liberalized immigration, criminal justice reform, and higher education spending. This does not include the $24 million given to the FWD.us Education Fund by the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative. 3 During Chan Zuckerberg Advocacy’s first year, its only grant was $3.7 million, given to FWD.us. 4

In 2018, Chan Zuckerberg Advocacy gave $3 million to the Ohio State and Healthy Communities Campaign, which supported the passage of State Issue 1,1 a bundle of liberalizing criminal justice policies including reduced prison time for prisoners who complete rehabilitation programs, a reduction in sentencing on drug crimes, and an increase in drug treatment options for convicted criminals. State Issue 1 was also supported by George Soros’s Open Society Policy Center, but was ultimately defeated at the ballot. 5

From 2019 to 2021, Chan Zuckerberg Advocacy will be giving $759,713 to Forward Justice, a group which promotes “Clean Slate” policies in North Carolina to limit the persistence of criminal records. 5

Leadership

Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan

Mark Zuckerberg is the co-founder, CEO, and largest shareholder of Facebook. As of September 2020, he was the third-richest person in the world with an estimated net worth of $98 billion. 6 Priscilla Chan is a licensed pediatrician and former teacher. The two met while attending Harvard University and married in 2012. 7

Though Zuckerberg has never openly identified with a political party, he primarily supports Democratic candidates, having given money to Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-IL), Senator Charles Schumer, Congressional candidate Sean Eldridge (D-NY), the San Francisco Democratic Central Committee, and Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ),8 for whom Zuckerberg also hosted a fundraising dinner in 2013. 9 Priscilla Chan has also donated to Booker, Schumer, and Eldridge. 10

Starting in 2017, there were rumors of Zuckerberg running for president as a Democratic candidate,11 but he ultimately did not run in the 2020 elections. 12 However, Zuckerberg did privately advise former South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg (D) during his 2020 Democratic presidential candidacy. 13

Zuckerberg has also donated to Republican politicians, including Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL), Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT), former Rep. John Boehner (R-OH), and former Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI). 8 Zuckerberg also hosted a fundraiser dinner for then-Governor Chris Christie (R-NJ) in 2013. 14

David Plouffe

In 2017, Democratic political consultant David Plouffe was hired as the president of the Chan Zuckerberg Advocacy and the president of policy and advocacy of the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative. Plouffe worked on numerous Democratic campaigns in his early career before joining political consulting firm AKPD Messenger and Media in 2001. In 2007, the firm ran Barack Obama’s presidential campaign and is largely credited for his victory. Afterward, Plouffe served as a senior advisor in President Obama’s administration. 15

References

  1. “Grants.” Chan Zuckerberg Initiative. Accessed September 17, 2020. https://chanzuckerberg.com/grants-ventures/grants/?funding-entity=chan-zuckerberg-initiative-advocacy.
  2. Cahill, Nick. “Backers of Revision to Proposition 13 Turn in 1.7 Million California Voter Signatures.” Courthouse News Services. April 2, 2020. Accessed September 17, 2020. https://www.courthousenews.com/backers-of-revision-to-proposition-13-turn-in-1-7-million-california-voter-signatures/.
  3. “Who We Are.” Million Voters Project. Accessed September 17, 2020. http://millionvotersproject.org/about.
  4. “Chan Zuckerberg Advocacy Form 990.” ProPublica. Accessed September 12, 2020. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/display_990/813742328/12_2017_prefixes_81-84%2F813742328_201612_990O_2017121315023246.
  5. Bischoff, Laura A. “What is State Issue 1 on the Ohio ballot this fall?.” Dayton Daily News November 7, 2018. Accessed September 17, 2020. https://www.daytondailynews.com/news/what-state-issue-the-ohio-ballot-this-fall/eCgoD0oNgI8gGOU0DMi1HJ/.
  6. “#3 Mark Zuckerberg.” Forbes. September 16, 2020. https://www.forbes.com/profile/mark-zuckerberg/#a22404f3e06d.
  7. “Who is Priscilla Chan?” CNN Business. December 1, 2015. Accessed September 16, 2020. https://money.cnn.com/2015/12/01/technology/priscilla-chan-facts/.
  8. “Donor Lookup: Mark Zuckerberg.” Open Secrets. Accessed September 16, 2020. https://www.opensecrets.org/donor-lookup/results?name=mark+zuckerberg.
  9. Young, Elise. “Zuckerberg Plans Fundraiser for Cory Booker’s Senate Run.” Bloomberg. June 8, 2013. Accessed September 16, 2020. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2013-06-07/zuckerberg-plans-fundraiser-for-cory-booker-s-senate-run.
  10. “Donor Lookup: Priscilla Chan.” Open Secrets. Accessed September 16, 2020. https://www.opensecrets.org/donor-lookup/results?name=Priscilla+Chan.
  11. Carter, Shawn M. “More signs point to Mark Zuckerberg possibly running for president in 2020.” CNBC. August 15, 2017. Accessed September 16, 2020. https://www.cnbc.com/2017/08/15/mark-zuckerberg-could-be-running-for-president-in-2020.html.
  12. “Priscilla Chan says neither she nor her husband, Mark Zuckerberg, have political ambitions.” CBS. February 18, 2019. Accessed September 16, 2020. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/priscilla-chan-says-neither-she-nor-mark-zuckerberg-have-political-ambitions/.
  13. Pager, Tyler; Wagner, Kurt. “Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg Privately Advised Pete Buttigieg on Campaign Hires.” Time. October 21, 2019. Accessed September 16, 2020. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/priscilla-chan-says-neither-she-nor-mark-zuckerberg-have-political-ambitions/.
  14. Dickey, Megan Rose. “Mark Zuckerberg’s Holding a Fundraiser for Chris Christie.” Business Insider. January 24, 2013. Accessed September 16, 2020. https://www.businessinsider.com/mark-zuckerbergs-holding-a-fundraiser-for-chris-christie-2013-1.
  15. “David Plouffe.” LinkedIn. Accessed September 16, 2020. https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-plouffe-00662396/.
  See an error? Let us know!

Nonprofit Information

  • Accounting Period: December - November
  • Tax Exemption Received: October 1, 2016

  • Available Filings

    Period Form Type Total revenue Total functional expenses Total assets (EOY) Total liabilities (EOY) Unrelated business income? Total contributions Program service revenue Investment income Comp. of current officers, directors, etc. Form 990
    2017 Dec Form 990 $18,048,807 $44,187,229 $18,869,461 $49,087,218 N $18,043,025 $0 $5,782 $0 PDF
    2016 Dec Form 990 $43 $3,700,000 $300,043 $4,000,000 N $0 $0 $43 $0 PDF

    Additional Filings (PDFs)

    Chan Zuckerberg Advocacy


    Redwood City, CA