Hunt Alternatives

Hunt Alternatives is largely funded by Swanee Hunt and the Swanee Hunt Family Foundation.³ It has previously received funding from other left-of-center organizations and foundations including George Soros’s Open Society Foundations (Open Society Institute), the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, and the Ford Foundation. ^{4 5 6}

Background

Hunt Alternatives is an advocacy group founded by Swanee Hunt, a philanthropist and the former US Ambassador to Austria during the Clinton Administration. ¹ According to its tax filings, the group claims to promote “global peace, equity, justice, and civil rights.” ²

As of 2026, the organization’s website lists four major programs: “Demand Abolition,” which seeks to combat sex trafficking in the United States; “Inclusive Security,” which aims for increasing the number of women in leadership positions; “Prime Movers,” which aims to support leaders “of diverse American social movements;” and “Seismic Shift,” which aims to increase collaboration between female elected officials. ⁷

Financials

In 2024, Hunt Alternatives reported total revenues of $1,480,930, total expenses of $921,169, and net assets of $1,016,754. ⁸

Funding

Hunt Alternatives’ tax filings reveal that it has consistently received significant funding from Swanee Hunt and the Swanee Hunt Family Foundation. From 2020 through 2024, it received a total of $7,313,432 from the Swanee Hunt Family Foundation and $513,374 from Swanee Hunt, which accounted for nearly all of its grant revenue in those years.³

It has previously received funding from left-of-center organizations and foundations including George Soros’s Open Society Foundations (Open Society Institute), the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, and the Ford Foundation. ^{4 5 6}

Leadership

Swanee Hunt is the founder and board chair of Hunt Alternatives as of 2026. Hunt is also a philanthropist and the former US Ambassador to Austria during the Clinton Administration. ¹ Other board members included Theo Ansbacher-Hunt, Peter Canellos, David Flink, Ray Hammond, Marva Hammons, Fern Portnoy, Lillian Shuff, Rodney Shuff, and William M. Snyder. ⁹