Open Democracy

Background

The Coalition for Open Democracy was founded in 1977 by a group of activists supporting heavier regulations on election-related speech activity, particularly Doris Haddock, also known as “Granny D Haddock,” who was notable for having walked across the continental United States in support of the McCain-Feingold Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act. In December 2014, the group registered as a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in Concord, New Hampshire. ^{1 2}

Advocacy

Open Democracy opposes the United States Supreme Court’s decision in Citizens United v. FEC and supports heavier regulations on federal election-related speech activity. The organization supports discontinuing Super PACs, limiting the sorts of individuals and institutions that can donate to political campaigns, and exclusively funding of elections through government-sponsored donation-vouchers given to voters. ³

At the state level, Open Democracy opposes the prevailing structure of New Hampshire campaign finance law, which allows limited liability corporations to donate to political campaigns without counting such donations as part of the total donation-amount of individuals associated with a given limited liability corporation. ³

Fellowships

Open Democracy operates two seasonal fellowships: a research fellowship and an organizing fellowship. Individuals participating in the first fellowship assist the organization in researching, compiling, and distributing data on how given campaigns are financed; and individuals participating in the second assist the organization in garnering support from New Hampshire voters, particularly ones on college campuses. ^{4 5 6}

People

Olivia Zink

Olivia Zink is the executive director of Open Democracy and has previously worked as the organization’s program director. Before joining Open Democracy, Zink worked at the Democracy Center in Bolivia and was the grassroots engagement coordinator for the Governing Under the Influence Project in Concord, a project of the American Friends Service Committee. Additionally, Zink has worked on various campaigns supporting left-leaning policy objectives, including ones managed by the New Hampshire Citizens Alliance, National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, as well as the Priorities New Hampshire Campaign. ²

Kate Coon

Kate Coon is the co-chair of Open Democracy as well as the chairperson of the PeterboroughPlus unit of the League of Women Voters, a member of the Peterborough Recreation Committee, a member of the Peterborough’s Community Task Force on Housing, and the vice president of the board of Peterborough Folk Music. ²

Ken Barnes

Ken Barnes is the co-chair of Open Democracy’s board of directors as well as a sole-practitioner public interest lawyer. Formerly, Barnes worked as a legal aid lawyer in New Hampshire and the South Bronx area of New York City. ²