The Ohio Organizing Campaign (OOC) is a voter outreach organization that works to implement left-of-center policies and elect left-of-center candidates in Ohio. ¹ It is the sister organization of the Ohio Organizing Collaborative. It spends most of its budget on voter turnout and policy advocacy among “Black voters, young voters, and working-class voters in anchored in Ohio’s urban centers.” ²

OOC has advocated for abortion access, the legalization of marijuana, the strengthening of unions, increases in public education funding, and bail reform. ³ It has received grants from major left-of-center grantmakers like the New Venture Fund and the Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors, as well as labor unions like the Communication Workers of America, a member of the AFL-CIO union federation. ⁴

Advocacy

The runs voter engagement programs in Cincinnati, Dayton, Columbus, Akron, Warren, Cleveland, and Youngstown. It conducts voter engagement through text messaging, email, direct mail, phone calls, and in-person canvassing. I campaigns for the election of left-wing leaders and to pass left-wing laws. ²

Elected Officials

Ohio Organizing Campaign helped elect Gary Tyack (D), a former defense attorney who served as Franklin County Prosecutor until 2025; Charmaine McGuffey (D), “Hamilton County’s first openly queer and progressive sheriff;” ³ and Jennifer Brunner (D), an Ohio Supreme Court judge. OOC also claims to have flipped 11 judicial seats in favor of Democrats and helped elect three Democrat female judges. ³

Criminal Justice Reform

OOC states it helped pass Cleveland Issue 24 in 2021. ³ Issue 24 created a permanent 13-member Community Police Commission which has authority over police discipline. ⁵  The commission is responsible for investigating non-criminal complaints filed against the Cleveland Division of Police. The Commission has the final authority to discipline police officers, and it can “overrule any disciplinary decisions by the Chief of Police.” ⁶ OOC spent nearly $50,000 canvassing voters to pass Issue 24. ⁶

OOC states it helped pass Columbus Issue 2 in 2020. It created a police oversight board that is responsible for receiving and investigating allegations against police officers but only has the authority to recommend disciplinary actions. The police department must provide records when requested by the board and may subpoena officers with approval from the attorney general. OOC advocated for this Issue, and in 2020, nearly 75 percent of Columbus voters voted to pass it. ⁷

Education

OOC states it helped pass Issue 11 in Columbus, which proposed a levy on property owners that would cost them an extra $269.50 annually per $100,000 of appraised value. The extra money generated would be put towards school renovations and maintain staff hired from federal Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief funds. OOC canvased for the issue and voters passed the measure in 2023. ⁸

OOC states it helped pass Issue 17 in Cincinnati, a five-year levy, starting in 2022, that would tax property owners $734 annually per $100,000 of appraised value. The money generated would go toward the Cincinnati City School District for “emergency requirements” of the district. OOC canvased for the issue, and in 2020, voters passed the bill. ⁹

Funding

In 2024, the Ohio Organizing Campaign received a $30,000 grant from Vote Save America, a political advocacy group aligned with Crooked Media, a media company founded by former staffers of the Obama administration. The grant was part of a larger grantmaking effort by Vote Save America to help smaller advocacy organizations push left-wing policies and get left-wing politicians elected. ¹⁰  The grant to OOC aimed to support the unsuccessful reelection campaign of U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH). ¹¹

1. “Who We Are.” Ohio Organizing Campaign. Accessed April 21, 2025. https://www.ohioorganizingcampaign.org/who-we-are.
2. “Our Work.” Ohio Organizing Campaign. Accessed April 21, 2025. https://www.ohioorganizingcampaign.org/our-work.
3. “Our History & Our Wins.” Ohio Organizing Campaign. Accessed April 21, 2025. https://www.ohioorganizingcampaign.org/ooc4-history-wins.
4.  “Ohio Organizing Campaign.” ProPublica. Accessed April 21, 2025. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/full_text_search?sort=name&form%5B%5D=IRS990ScheduleI&q=26-3064170&submit=Apply.
5. Richmond, Matthew. “Cleveland Police Oversight Amendment Issue 24 Passes by a Wide Margin.” Ideastream Public Media, November 3, 2021. https://www.ideastream.org/community/2021-11-03/cleveland-police-oversight-amendment-issue-24-passes-by-a-wide-margin.
6. ^[1] “Issue 24 Charter Amendment to Go to Voters.” Cleveland City Council, August 19, 2021. https://www.clevelandcitycouncil.org/resources/news-media/issue-24-charter-amendment-go-voters.
7. “Columbus, Ohio, Issue 2, Civilian Police Review Board and Inspector General Charter Amendment (November 2020).” Ballotpedia. Accessed April 21, 2025. https://ballotpedia.org/Columbus,_Ohio,_Issue_2,_Civilian_Police_Review_Board_and_Inspector_General_Charter_Amendment_(November_2020).
8.  “Issue 11 Levy Facts.” School Wires. Accessed April 21, 2025. https://oh01913306.schoolwires.net/Page/12276.
9. Cincinnati City School District, Ohio, Issue 17, Property Tax Renewal (November 2020).” Ballotpedia. Accessed April 21, 2025. https://ballotpedia.org/Cincinnati_City_School_District,_Ohio,_Issue_17,_Property_Tax_Renewal_(November_2020).
10. Timotija, Filip. “Crooked Media’s Political Arm Pouring Money into Battleground States.” The Hill, March 14, 2024. https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/4532300-crooked-media-political-arm-money-battleground-states/.
11. Evans, Nick. “Republican Bernie Moreno Defeats Incumbent Sherrod Brown for Ohio U.S. Senate Seat • Ohio Capital Journal.” Ohio Capital Journal, November 5, 2024. https://ohiocapitaljournal.com/2024/11/05/republican-bernie-moreno-defeats-incumbent-sherrod-brown-for-ohio-u-s-senate-seat-ap-projects/.