Chicago Votes is a left-of-center get out the vote organization in Chicago that focuses on increasing the youth and prisoner vote in the city. It is the charitable partner organization to the advocacy group Chicago Votes Action Fund. ¹

Founding and History

Chicago Votes was founded in 2014 as a get-out-the-vote effort among youth in Chicago. It received tax exempt status in 2015 and since then has expanded its efforts to include advocating for changes to the criminal justice system and access to voting for prisoners. ^{2 3}

Finances

In 2020, Chicago Votes reported $1,288,650 in revenue, of which $1,237,289 was derived from contributions and grants. The organization had $705,886 in expenses, of which $589,926 was allocated towards salaries, compensation, and benefits, and $70,587 toward fundraising expenses. It ended the year with $847,379 in net assets, up from $264,615 at the beginning of 2020. ⁴

Projects

Cook County Jail Votes

Since 2017, Chicago Votes has been the official sponsor of voter outreach at the Cook County Jail. The group began by running monthly voter registration drives, but has expanded its activities to include a variety of educational, advocacy, and election coordination programs. According to Chicago Votes, over 90 percent of the population at the Cook County Jail has the right to vote, but are largely unaware of this. ⁵

Reimagining Democracy

Reimaging Democracy is Chicago Votes’ oldest program. It serves as a get-out-the-vote effort among youth and provides transportation for high school students to polling places. ⁶

Give a Sh*t Chicago

Give a Sh*t Chicago is a program run by Chicago Votes. The program attempts to promote youth voting by hosting various events, such as fashion shows, parties, and happy hours. Chicago Votes also sponsors an art collective that works to engage Chicago youth in politics and voting. ⁷

Leadership

Rebecca Petzel is the president of Chicago Votes. She is a “collaboration consultant” who co-founded and runs a consulting firm called The Emergence Collective. ⁸

Steve Valles is a co-executive director of Chicago Votes. He has a degree in social work and has worked on a variety of political and activist campaigns. During his time at Chicago Votes, the Cook County Jail was made a polling location at Chicago Votes’ urging and instituted a requirement that former prisoners receive mandatory civic education classes. He has also advocated for the legalization of cannabis. ⁹

Jen Dean is a co-executive director of Chicago Votes. She began working for the organization in 2014 as a field organizer, before taking on the role of director of operations and finance from December 2014 to June of 2017 and then becoming deputy director in June 2017 until March of 2022, when she began her current role as a co-executive director. She has advocated for a variety of changes to the Chicago criminal justice system, including voting rights for prisoners, mandatory civics education for released prisoners, and ensuring that people with past felony convictions are able to serve on juries. She also advocates for the legalization of cannabis. ¹⁰

Rudy Garret is a co-executive director of Chicago Votes. She previously worked as a lead field organizer and deputy director with the organization. Garret has advocated for the expansion of voting rights for currently imprisoned people, especially women. ^{11 12 13}

1.  “About Us – Chicago Votes C3.” Chicago Votes. Accessed December 19, 2022. https://chicagovotesedfund.com/about-us/.
2. “Reimagining Democracy – Chicago Votes C3.” Chicago Votes. Accessed December 19, 2022. https://chicagovotesedfund.com/parade-to-the-polls-2/
3. “Cook County Jail Votes – Chicago Votes C3.” Chicago Votes. Accessed December 19, 2022. https://chicagovotesedfund.com/cook-county-jail-votes-2/.
4. Chicago Votes, Return from an organization exempt from income tax (990), 2020, Part I
5. “Cook County Jail Votes – Chicago Votes C3.” Chicago Votes. Accessed December 19, 2022. https://chicagovotesedfund.com/cook-county-jail-votes-2/.
6. “Reimagining Democracy – Chicago Votes C3.” Chicago Votes. Accessed December 19, 2022. https://chicagovotesedfund.com/parade-to-the-polls-2/.
7. “Give A Sh*t Collective – Chicago Votes C3.” Chicago Votes. Accessed December 19, 2022. https://chicagovotesedfund.com/g-a-s-collective/.
8. “Who We Are.” THE EMERGENCE COLLECTIVE. Accessed December 19, 2022. https://www.emergence-collective.net/who-we-are.html.
9. “Stevie Valles – Chicago Votes.” Chicago Votes. Accessed December 19, 2022. https://chicagovotes.com/stevie-valles/.
10. “Jen Dean, MA | LinkedIn.” LinkedIn.com. Accessed December 19, 2022. https://www.linkedin.com/in/jendean1210/.
11. “Staff & Board – Chicago Votes C3.” Accessed December 19, 2022. https://chicagovotesedfund.com/staff-and-board/.
12. “Ruelyn Garrett | LinkedIn.” Chicago Votes. Accessed December 19, 2022. https://www.linkedin.com/in/ruelyn-garrett-89219172/.
13. “Rudy Garrett (@Rudy_Garrett09) / Twitter.” Twitter. Accessed December 19, 2022. https://twitter.com/Rudy_Garrett09.