Non-profit

National Redistricting Foundation (NRF)

Website:

redistrictingfoundation.org

Location:

Washington, DC

Tax ID:

82-0757693

Tax-Exempt Status:

501(c)(3)

Budget (2018):

Revenue: $3,325,489
Expenses: $5,645,424
Assets: $2,221,405

Formation:

February 2017 1

References

  1. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). National Redistricting Foundation (2017). Part VI (Supplemental Information). Accessed January 21, 2019.
Type:

Redistricting Litigation Nonprofit

President and CEO:

Kelly Ward

Latest Tax Filing:

2020 Form 990 (07/2019 — 06/2020)

Contact InfluenceWatch with suggested edits or tips for additional profiles.

For more information, see National Democratic Redistricting Committee (PAC)

The National Redistricting Foundation (NRF) is the 501(c)(3) nonprofit affiliate of the National Democratic Redistricting Committee, a Democratic Party-aligned PAC chaired by former Attorney General Eric Holder, and the 501(c)(4) advocacy group National Redistricting Action Fund. The nonprofit was created to litigate against Republican state elected officials for alleged Voting Rights Act infractions and what it deems illegal “gerrymandering” of state legislative and congressional districts ahead of the 2020 U.S. Census.

Background

The National Democratic Redistricting Foundation describes its mission as “initiating litigation that will have a nationwide impact in creating more just and representative electoral districts,” a goal it pursues through engaging in “work that affects the redistricting process, including monitoring the national census activity.”1

Affiliated Groups

The NRF’s targeted litigation and national census efforts are coordinated with its two “sister” affiliates: the National Democratic Redistricting Committee, a Democratic Party PAC chaired by Eric Holder, and the National Redistricting Action Fund, a 501(c)(4) advocacy nonprofit. The organizations share the same Washington, D.C. office space. 2

Targeted Litigation

Wisconsin

On February 26, 2018, the group filed a lawsuit against then-Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker (R) “for his refusal to hold two special elections for seats in the Wisconsin General Assembly.” 3 The lawsuit arose after two Wisconsin state officials, Rep. Keith Ripp and Sen. Frank Lasee, resigned their offices in December 2017 to accept positions in Gov. Walker’s administration.

Three days after former Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker signed into law Republican-backed legislation restricting early voting in December 2018, One Wisconsin Institute (OWI), a self-described “non-partisan research & education organization,” filed a lawsuit challenging the legislation. NRF backed OWI in filing the lawsuits.4 Eric Holder said: “Republicans in the Wisconsin legislature and their defeated governor are using their gerrymandered majorities to—once again—attempt to suppress the votes of people of color in the state.”5

Georgia

On October 3, 2017, the nonprofit was reported by the New York Times as filing a racial gerrymandering lawsuit against Georgia Republicans. The lawsuit alleges that the defendants violated the Voting Rights Act and the Fourteenth Amendment in 2015 by “adjusting the state’s 105th and 111th legislative districts to minimize the influence of black voters and failing to draw a majority-minority district in the Atlanta area.” 6

North Carolina

Common Cause, a left-leaning nonprofit based in Washington, D.C., sued the state of North Carolina after the 2018 midterm elections on the grounds that its current congressional districts violate the state constitution’s Equal Protection Clause in that they are based off of voter data rather than population.7 Bob Phillips, executive director for Common Cause North Carolina, claimed: “We don’t have fair and legal maps in North Carolina. And we certainly have not had them at any time in this decade.”8 NRF will cover the legal fees for Common Cause.9

In 2019, the National Redistricting Foundation supported voters that filed a lawsuit separate from Common Cause’s lawsuit over the alleged partisan gerrymandering of the North Carolina congressional map. The lawsuit was filed in Wake County Superior Court and states that the 2016 redistricting plan for North Carolina violates the North Carolina Constitution. The lawsuit seeks to draw a new redistricting plan for North Carolina for the 2020 elections.

In particular, the lawsuit states that the 2016 redistricting map violates the state constitution’s “Free Elections” and “Equal Protection” clauses that work to outline and protect the rights of North Carolina voters. The lawsuit also stated that the 2016 North Carolina redistricting plan violated the North Carolina state constitution’s Freedom of Assembly and Freedom of Speech clauses.

The National Redistricting Foundation is an affiliate company of the National Democratic Redistricting Committee. The National Redistricting Foundation paid for the legal fees of Arnold & Porter and Perkins Coie and Patterson Harkavy LLP during the lawsuit. 10

Funding

Financial Overview

Note that NRF’s Form 990 does not follow a normal calendar year, and instead covers the period of July 1 through June 31

In 2019-2020, the National Redistricting Foundation reported total revenues of $9,029,944, total expenditures of $6,841,375, and net assets of $5,357,826. 11

In 2018-2019, NRF reported total revenues of $7,020,744, total expenditures of $4,320,030 (including grants paid totaling $962,493), and net assets of $3,170,848. 12

In 2017-2018, the National Redistricting Foundation reported total revenues of $3,325,489, total expenses of $5,645,424 (including grants paid totaling $50,000), and net assets $489,244. 13 The NRF also reported holding $1,015,250 in publicly traded securities in 2017. 14

Donors to National Redistricting Foundation

The donor-advised fund providers Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund,15 Goldman Sachs Philanthropy Fund,16 and the San Francisco Foundation have passed financial support from anonymous donors to National Redistricting Foundation, an arrangement liberal organizations have criticized as “dark money” when practiced by conservatives.17

In 2019, the Silicon Valley Community Foundation (SVCF) donated $1,004,500 to NRF. 18

In January 2021, the left-leaning Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation, which funds liberal groups in North Carolina, announced a grant of an unknown size to NRF for its “Fighting for Fairer Maps in North Carolina project.” The grant was part of the foundation’s “State-Level Systemic Change Strategy” grant awards. 19

The following are all known grants to NRF: 20

DonorAmountYearGrant Description
Hopewell Fund$683,330 2019
Combined Jewish Philanthropies Of Greater Boston$500,000 2018DAF - Civil Rights
Kohl Feinerman Fam Charitable Trust$5002017UNRESTRICTED GRANT TO FURTHER THE ORGANIZATION'S EXEMPT PURPOSE
Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund$215,200 2017FOR GRANT RECIPIENT'S EXEMPT PURPOSES
Lisa and Douglas Goldman Fund$200,0002019To ensure a fair and accurate 2020 Census through public and policymaker education and litigation in order to achieve a representative democracy.
San Francisco Foundation$100,000 2017FOR GENERAL SUPPORT
San Francisco Foundation$100,000 2018FOR GENERAL SUPPORT.
Scott A. Nathan Charitable Trust$100,000 2017GENERAL PURPOSE
Stephen M Silberstein Foundation$100,000 2018TO DISMANTLE UNFAIR ELECTORAL MAPS AND CREATE A REDISTRICTING SYSTEM BASED ON DEMOCRATIC VALUES
San Francisco Foundation$100,000 2019
Seattle Foundation$51,000 2019TO PROVIDE GENERAL SUPPORT.
Cavali Foundation$50,000 2018GENERAL USE
Florence S Beecher Foundation$50,000 2018PUBLIC EDUCATION CAMPAIGN
Goldman Sachs Philanthropy Fund$50,000 2019COMMUNITY & HUMAN SERVICES
Baton Rouge Area Foundation$50,0002020
The Heyday Foundation$25,000 2017GENERAL SUPPORT
California Community Foundation$20,000 2018Civic Engagement
Pittsburgh Foundation$15,0002020
East Bay Community Foundation$12,000 2018GENERAL SUPPORT
Citizens for Truth$12,0002019To dismantle unfair electoral maps and create a redistricting system based on democratic values in advance of the 2021 redistricting cycle
Good Heart Work Smart Foundation$10,000 2018CHARITABLE CONTRIBUTION
Van De Bunt Fox Family Foundation$10,000 2018GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT
Wedner Family Foundation$10,000 2017TO FURTHER PROGRAM SERVICES
Bastian Family Foundation$6,000 2018GENERAL
Eacho Family Foundation$5,000 2018General Support
George And Judy Marcus Family Foundation$5,000 2018CHARITY
Rockefeller Foundation$3,0002019
MGG Foundation$2,000 2018PUBLIC CHARITY
Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund$1,142,000 2018For grant recipient's exempt purposes
The Foundation For Maryland'S Future$1,013,312 2017Support for education
Silicon Valley Community Foundation$1,004,500 2019
Sara & Evan Williams Foundation$1,000,000 2018General support
Sara & Evan Williams Foundation$1,000,000 2017GENERAL SUPPORT
Greater Washington Community Foundation$1,000,000 2018
Someland Foundation$1,000,0002017
Jewish Communal Fund$100,0002020
Total:$9,744,842

Financial Documents

NRF’s Form 990 filings for 2019 and 2020 are available here:

Leadership

President and CEO

Kelly Ward serves as president and chief executive officer of the National Redistricting Foundation and the National Redistricting Action Fund, and she also serves as executive director of the National Democratic Redistricting Committee (NDRC), the nonprofit’s PAC affiliate. 21 22 Ward is a Democratic Party operative and campaign strategist. From 2010 to 2017, she served first as political director and then as executive director of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC), a PAC used to elect Democrats to the House of Representatives. Prior to that, Ward served in various positions for a number of left-leaning nonprofits in Arizona, campaign manager for Democratic congressional candidates, and in the office of Democratic Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano.

Board of Directors

According to the NRF’s 2017 tax filing, the nonprofit’s board of directors is composed of president Kelly Ward, Elisabeth Pearson, and Mitch Stewart. 23

Elisabeth Pearson is president of the National Democratic Redistricting Committee (NDRC). From 2013 to December 2018, Pearson served as executive director of the Democratic Governors Association; she has also served as political director of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC).24

Mitch Stewart is a Democratic Party consultant and campaign strategist. Stewart is a founding partner at 270 Strategies, a Democratic consulting firm whose clients include Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign, the U.S. Senate campaign for Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Organizing for America, and Planned Parenthood. 25 He served as battleground states director for President Barack Obama’s 2012 reelection campaign and prior to that as national director for Organizing for America, a left-wing advocacy group. 26

References

  1. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). National Redistricting Foundation (2017). Schedule O (Supplemental Information for Part 1, Line 1). Accessed January 21, 2019.
  2. “Statement of Organization: National Democratic Redistricting PAC.” Federal Election Commission (FEC), Filing FEC-1137745. January 9, 2017. http://docquery.fec.gov/cgi-bin/forms/C00630707/1137745/
  3. National Democratic Redistricting Committee. “National Redistricting Foundation Files Lawsuit Against Governor Scott Walker.” News release, February 26, 2018. The Wheeler Report. Accessed April 17, 2018. http://www.thewheelerreport.com/wheeler_docs/files/0226nrf.pdf.
  4. “Judge wastes no time blocking voting restrictions passed by GOP.” Kenosha News. January 21, 2019. Accessed January 22, 2019. http://www.kenoshanews.com/opinion/judge-wastes-no-time-blocking-voting-restrictions-passed-by-gop/article_5b92d7fe-fc19-5eae-8e32-a9a0a3dcaa6e.html#/questions/
  5. “Press Release: One Wisconsin Institute Files Request for Court to Enforce Rulings Striking Down Republican Lame Duck Restrictions on Voting.” One Wisconsin Now. December 17, 2018. Accessed January 23, 2019. https://onewisconsinnow.org/institute/press/one-wisconsin-institute-files-request-for-court-to-enforce-rulings-striking-down-republican-lame-duck-restrictions-on-voting/
  6. “Holder-Led Group Challenges Georgia Redistricting, Claiming Racial Bias.” The New York Times. October 3, 2017. Accessed April 18, 2018. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/03/us/eric-holder-georgia-redistricting-racial-bias.html
  7. Michael Perchick. “NC Democrats sue state over voting district maps.” ABC 11 News. November 13, 2018. Accessed January 22, 2019. https://abc11.com/politics/nc-democrats-sue-state-over-voting-district-maps-/4682491/
  8. Michael Perchick. “NC Democrats sue state over voting district maps.” ABC 11 News. November 13, 2018. Accessed January 22, 2019. https://abc11.com/politics/nc-democrats-sue-state-over-voting-district-maps-/4682491/
  9. Michael Perchick. “NC Democrats sue state over voting district maps.” ABC 11 News. November 13, 2018. Accessed January 22, 2019. https://abc11.com/politics/nc-democrats-sue-state-over-voting-district-maps-/4682491/
  10. Rodenbush, Patrick. “National Redistricting Foundation Supports New Lawsuit in North Carolina: Individual Voters Sue in North Carolina State Court Over Partisan Gerrymandering of Congressional Map.” National Redistricting Foundation. September 27, 2019. https://redistrictingfoundation.org/news/2019/9/27/national-redistricting-foundation-supports-new-lawsuit-in-north-carolina-individual-voters-sue-in-north-carolina-state-court-over-partisan-gerrymandering-of-congressional-map.
  11. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). National Redistricting Foundation. 2020. Part I, Lines 12 and 18.
  12. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). National Redistricting Foundation. 2019. Part I, Lines 12 and 18.
  13. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). National Redistricting Foundation. 2018. Part I, Lines 12 and 18.
  14. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). National Redistricting Foundation (2017). Schedule M, Part I, Line 9 (Securities – Publicly traded).
  15. Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund, Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990), 2018, Schedule I
  16. Goldman Sachs Philanthropy Fund, Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990), 2019, Schedule I https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/311774905/202022189349300322/IRS990ScheduleI
  17. San Francisco Foundation, Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990), 2018, Schedule I https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/311774905/202022189349300322/IRS990ScheduleI
  18. Return of Foundation Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990-PF). Silicon Valley Community Foundation. 2019. Schedule I. Archived: https://www.influencewatch.org/app/uploads/2021/06/Silicon-Valley-Community-Foundation-2019-Form-990.pdf. See PDF page 341.
  19. “ZSR Announces Fall 2020 Grant Awards | Announcing State-Level Systemic Change Strategy grant recipients. Z. Smith Reynolds. Jan. 22, 2021. Accessed June 21, 2021. https://www.zsr.org/articles/zsr-announces-fall-2020-grant-awards
  20. Information provided by FoundationSearch. www.FoundationSearch.org. Accessed June 21, 2021.
  21. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). National Redistricting Foundation (2017). Part VII. Accessed January 21, 2019.
  22. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). National Redistricting Action Fund (2017). Part VII. Accessed January 21, 2019.
  23. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). National Redistricting Foundation (2017). Part VII. Accessed January 21, 2019.
  24. “Press Release: DGA Announces New Executive Director.” Democratic Governors Association. December 3, 2018. Accessed January 21, 2019. https://democraticgovernors.org/news/dga-announces-new-executive-director/
  25. “What We Do.” 270 Strategies. Accessed January 21, 2019. https://www.270strategies.com/what-we-do/
  26. “Mitch Stewart.” 270 Strategies. Accessed January 21, 2019. https://www.270strategies.com/our-team/mitch-stewart/

Directors, Employees & Supporters

  1. Kelly Ward
    President and Chief Executive Officer
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Nonprofit Information

  • Accounting Period: June - May
  • Tax Exemption Received: May 1, 2017

  • 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
    2018 Jun Form 990 $3,325,489 $5,645,424 $2,221,405 $1,732,161 N $3,325,489 $0 $0 $48,500 PDF
    2017 Jun Form 990 $2,857,380 $6,530 $2,850,850 $0 N $2,877,800 $0 $0 $0 PDF

    National Redistricting Foundation (NRF)

    700 13th St NW
    Suite 600
    Washington, DC 20005