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Non-profit

Southern Elections Fund (SEF)

Website:

www.southernelectionsfund.org/
Location:

Washington, DC
Tax-Exempt Status:

501(c)(4)

Formation:

2014
Type:

Left-Progressive Activist Organization
Executive Director:

Marvin Randolph

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Southern Elections Fund (SEF) is a left-progressive organization which seeks to mobilize Black voters and elect left-progressive candidates for office in the South. 1 SEF was originally founded in 1969 by Julian Bond, then a Georgia state legislator and later the first president of the controversial Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC). 2 In 2014, Bond and left-of-center political activist Ben Jealous revived the organization to support left-progressive policies and candidates in the South. 3 4

SEF believes “right wing leaders are attacking the right to vote” and that left-leaning ethnic minority groups and left-progressive white voters represent the South’s political future. 5 6 SEF provides voter registration tools from the left-progressive-aligned Rock the Vote, 7 has supported giving former felons the right to vote in Maryland, 8 and  supported the unsuccessful 2018 gubernatorial campaign of Stacey Abrams (D-GA), 9 the campaign of Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-GA), 10 and the left-of-center New Georgia Project. 11

Left-wing political consultant and activist Marvin Randolph is the president and CEO of SEF. 12 Democratic Party politician and activist Stacey Abrams was a member of the SEF’s board of directors. 13

History and Leadership

Southern Elections Fund was originally founded in 1969 by Julian Bond, at the time a Georgia state legislator and later the first president of the controversial Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), 14 to support Black candidates running for office in the South. 15 16 In 2014, Bond and left-of-center political activist Ben Jealous revived the organization to support left-progressive policies in the South. 17 18

Left-wing political consultant and activist Marvin Randolph is the president and CEO of the Southern Elections Fund. He is also the president of the Southern Engagement Foundation. 19 Prior to working at SEF, Randolph worked at the left-of-center NAACP and was the deputy executive director for Change Nation’s Campaign for Community Change Action. 20 He has also worked at the Center for Community Change (CCC), the NAACP National Voter Fund, the SEIU labor union, left-of-center Project Vote, the Democratic National Committee (DNC), and on the 1996 re-election campaign of then-President Bill Clinton. 21 22

Democratic Party politician and activist Stacey Abrams was a board member of the SEF’s board of directors. 23

Activities and Funding

The Southern Elections Fund is a North Carolina-based activist group that works to mobilize black voters and elect left-progressive candidates in the South. 24 SEF works in the South to expand the electorate, develop new minority leaders, and ensure that electoral power brings left-progressive change to those constituencies. 25

SEF expresses the view that liberal-leaning ethnic minority groups and left-progressive white voters represent the South’s political future. 26 SEF has said “right wing leaders are attacking the right to vote” and works to register minority voters to increase left-progressive turnout in Southern states to counter right-of-center political power. 27

SEF provides voter registration tools from the left-progressive-aligned Rock the Vote 28 and has supported giving former felons the right to vote in Maryland. 29 SEF has supported the unsuccessful gubernatorial campaign of Stacey Abrams (D-GA), 30 the campaign of Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-GA), 31 and the left-of-center New Georgia Project. 32 In 2018, the group organization directed individuals to make checks payable to left-of-center “Power PAC – SEF” to support its efforts for the campaign of Doug Jones (D-AL) for U.S. Senate. 33 34

In 2014, SEF published a report on Black voters in the South with the liberal Center for American Progress. 35

Funding

Southern Elections Fund receives funding from individual donations and grants. 36

According to outside reports, the Southern Elections Fund asked high-dollar Democratic Party donors to contribute $4 million to the organization during a meeting of the left-of-center Democracy Alliance in 2014. 37

References

  1. Southern Elections Fund Resurges to Drive Minority Voters.” DiversityInc. September 6, 2018. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://www.diversityinc.com/southern-elections-fund-resurges-drive-minority-voters/.
  2. “About.” Southern Elections Fund. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://www.southernelectionsfund.org/about.
  3. Homepage.” Southern Elections Fund. Accessed April 9, 2022. https://www.southernelectionsfund.org/.
  4. “Southern Elections Fund Resurges to Drive Minority Voters.” DiversityInc. September 6, 2018. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://www.diversityinc.com/southern-elections-fund-resurges-drive-minority-voters/.
  5.  “The Southern Election Fund.” Southern Elections Fund Plan. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://freebeacon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/SEF-plan.pdf.
  6. “The Southern Election Fund.” Southern Elections Fund Plan. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://freebeacon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/SEF-plan.pdf.
  7. [1] “Southern Elections Fund Resurges to Drive Minority Voters.” DiversityInc. September 6, 2018. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://www.diversityinc.com/southern-elections-fund-resurges-drive-minority-voters/.
  8. Jealous, Ben. “Giving former offenders a stake in democracy.” The Baltimore Sun. March 30, 2017. Accessed via web archive April 6, 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20170330233026/https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/oped/bs-ed-voting-rights-20150423-story.html.
  9. Southern Elections Fund. Facebook. Posted June 27, 2018. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=2119430898302344&id=1518031021775671&__cft__[0]=AZWrwUzuPHpJwo5HjR2zF83uCmql8ZnHKhKXu0OmG7LD24_l3wny47OiWewTcrOHnAlhLsnoZJym0MaxhVRmLfrkrwIDbK373zrz-BaNlkd_ke5l8VBh-JUU6P12mL0WMK2hwXjzf4WjxrfiqvZs2AwGylbSFTl9533Zv2imiLeDEwaxKgROHhCrwNvqje3gRkwGDZvXCdWxqCdEtWUTUdEfe1v9OFHaH-nt5l8XQg-q-w&__tn__=%2CO%2CP-R.
  10. “Re-Elect U.S. Senator Raphael Warnock and Defend our Senate Majority.” Southern Elections Fund. Facebook Event. November 8, 2020. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=2804548569790570&id=1518031021775671&__cft__[0]=AZWqRyOMs5Y95P5Wrr4jB1bBmVbJZWfd9me0HPMs11oM52Jr2eKNnx8aIc5bKWAyBDrrj7ckC1OvjVR2Je7n5UGjt2kYNaOJDDFEhdA_Tr93U-asdtL0gN2aTql5k5duHClc9r45Tpr3qtUjyYoQwurq2Nf_9bEcmHumHrxWAfGYgUZj-9Rm1oqJ7M7n4s7HSUk&__tn__=%2CO%2CP-R.
  11. “Homepage.” Southern Elections Fund. Accessed April 9, 2022. https://www.southernelectionsfund.org/.
  12. “Marvin Randolph.” LinkedIn. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://www.linkedin.com/in/mrandolphdc/.
  13. “The Southern Election Fund.” Southern Elections Fund Plan. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://freebeacon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/SEF-plan.pdf.
  14. “About.” Southern Elections Fund. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://www.southernelectionsfund.org/about.
  15. Southern Elections Fund & Julian Bond Papers, 1965-1975, Accession #10907, Special Collections Dept., University of Virginia Library, Charlottesville, Va. https://ead.lib.virginia.edu/vivaxtf/view?docId=uva-sc/viu01511.xml.
  16. “Southern Elections Fund Resurges to Drive Minority Voters.” DiversityInc. September 6, 2018. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://www.diversityinc.com/southern-elections-fund-resurges-drive-minority-voters/.
  17. “Homepage.” Southern Elections Fund. Accessed April 9, 2022. https://www.southernelectionsfund.org/.
  18. “Southern Elections Fund Resurges to Drive Minority Voters.” DiversityInc. September 6, 2018. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://www.diversityinc.com/southern-elections-fund-resurges-drive-minority-voters/.
  19. “Marvin Randolph.” LinkedIn. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://www.linkedin.com/in/mrandolphdc/.
  20. “Marvin Randolph.” LinkedIn. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://www.linkedin.com/in/mrandolphdc/.
  21. “Marvin Randolph.” LinkedIn. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://www.linkedin.com/in/mrandolphdc/.
  22. “Staff.” Southern Elections Fund. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://www.southernelectionsfund.org/staff.
  23. “The Southern Election Fund.” Southern Elections Fund Plan. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://freebeacon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/SEF-plan.pdf.
  24. “Southern Elections Fund Resurges to Drive Minority Voters.” DiversityInc. September 6, 2018. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://www.diversityinc.com/southern-elections-fund-resurges-drive-minority-voters/.
  25. “About.” Southern Elections Fund. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://www.southernelectionsfund.org/about.
  26. “The Southern Election Fund.” Southern Elections Fund Plan. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://freebeacon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/SEF-plan.pdf.
  27.  “The Southern Election Fund.” Southern Elections Fund Plan. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://freebeacon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/SEF-plan.pdf.
  28. “Southern Elections Fund Resurges to Drive Minority Voters.” DiversityInc. September 6, 2018. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://www.diversityinc.com/southern-elections-fund-resurges-drive-minority-voters/.
  29. Jealous, Ben. “Giving former offenders a stake in democracy.” The Baltimore Sun. March 30, 2017. Accessed via web archive April 6, 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20170330233026/https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/oped/bs-ed-voting-rights-20150423-story.html.
  30. Southern Elections Fund. Facebook. Posted June 27, 2018. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=2119430898302344&id=1518031021775671&__cft__[0]=AZWrwUzuPHpJwo5HjR2zF83uCmql8ZnHKhKXu0OmG7LD24_l3wny47OiWewTcrOHnAlhLsnoZJym0MaxhVRmLfrkrwIDbK373zrz-BaNlkd_ke5l8VBh-JUU6P12mL0WMK2hwXjzf4WjxrfiqvZs2AwGylbSFTl9533Zv2imiLeDEwaxKgROHhCrwNvqje3gRkwGDZvXCdWxqCdEtWUTUdEfe1v9OFHaH-nt5l8XQg-q-w&__tn__=%2CO%2CP-R.
  31. “Re-Elect U.S. Senator Raphael Warnock and Defend our Senate Majority.” Southern Elections Fund. Facebook Event. November 8, 2020. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=2804548569790570&id=1518031021775671&__cft__[0]=AZWqRyOMs5Y95P5Wrr4jB1bBmVbJZWfd9me0HPMs11oM52Jr2eKNnx8aIc5bKWAyBDrrj7ckC1OvjVR2Je7n5UGjt2kYNaOJDDFEhdA_Tr93U-asdtL0gN2aTql5k5duHClc9r45Tpr3qtUjyYoQwurq2Nf_9bEcmHumHrxWAfGYgUZj-9Rm1oqJ7M7n4s7HSUk&__tn__=%2CO%2CP-R.
  32. “Homepage.” Southern Elections Fund. Accessed April 9, 2022. https://www.southernelectionsfund.org/.
  33. “The Alabama Opportunity.” Southern Elections Fund. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://www.southernelectionsfund.org/alabama.
  34. “The Alabama Opportunity.” Southern Elections Fund. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://www.southernelectionsfund.org/alabama.
  35. Jealous, Ben. “True South: Unleashing Democracy in the Black Belt 50 Years After Freedom Summer.” Center for American Progress. June 16, 2014. Accessed April 10, 2022. https://www.americanprogress.org/article/true-south-unleashing-democracy-in-the-black-belt-50-years-after-freedom-summer/.
  36. “Donate.” Southern Elections Fund. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://www.southernelectionsfund.org/donate.
  37. Markay, Lachlan. “Liberal Group Claims Dem Dominance in South is “Inevitable” Despite Defeats.” Washington Free Beacon. December 8, 2014. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://freebeacon.com/politics/liberal-group-claims-dem-dominance-in-south-is-inevitable-despite-defeats/.
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Southern Elections Fund (SEF)

1225 Eye Street NW, Suite 600
Washington, DC