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Victory 2021 Plan

Parent Organization: Issue One; Piper Fund
Project of:

Piper Fund and Issue One

The Victory 2021 Plan is a financial strategy organized by left-of-center Democracy Alliance-connected organizations Issue One and the Piper Fund to reduce the influence of political donations by 2021. 1

Established in 2014, the Victory 2021 Plan is a project of both the Piper Fund and Issue One, left-of-center nonprofit groups focused on limiting campaign speech. The initiative has been described as a “sector-wide blueprint” to unite left-of-center activism and funding in order to pursue policies that would limit political spending. 2 3 Civitas Public Affairs, a left-leaning strategy and public relations firm, coordinates the project. 4

Initiatives and Advocacy

The Victory 2021 Plan was originally established to promote 2015 ballot initiatives that aimed to implement government-financed political campaigns in Maine and in the city of Seattle, Washington. Both initiatives passed that year. 5 The organization also supported statewide initiatives for public campaign funding in Washington and South Dakota, passing the South Dakota initiative. 6 Victory 2021 also unsuccessfully lobbied for a ballot initiative in Missouri. 7

In 2015 and 2016, Victory 2021 called for then-President Barack Obama to issue an executive order that would require federal contractors to disclose their political spending. 8

Victory 2021 has also published several left-of-center editorials promoting campaign finance regulations, including a piece in the New York Times. 9

Organizational Partnerships

The Piper Fund is a grantmaking initiative of the left-of-center Proteus Fund that focuses on increasing the number of liberal judges and ending the influence of political donations. 10 The Piper Fund backed ballot initiatives for government funding of campaigns in Howard County, Maryland and Berkeley, California. Both initiatives succeeded. 11

Issue One is a left-of-center nonprofit that focuses on restricting private campaign contributions. Issue One recruited a coalition of more than 150 former senators, governors, and representatives to join the “ReFormers Caucus” to build support around a left-of-center legislative agenda that would restrict campaign contributions. 12 Issue One praised the Victory 2021 Plan as a “battle-plan” for left-of-center reform that provides information for donors to allocate support for campaign finance reform organizations. 13

Victory 2021 has partnered with other campaign finance organizations, including Americans for Campaign Finance Reform (a group co-chaired by former U.S. Senators Bill Bradley (D-NJ), Bob Kerrey (D-NE), Alan Simpson (R-WY), and Warren Rudman (R-NH)) and the Fund for the Republic. 14

Connections to George Soros

Civitas Public Affairs, a left-leaning strategy and public relations firm that has been involved in liberal billionaire George Soros’s organizational network, is the lead organization funding Victory 2021. Civitas describes Victory 2021 as a “a multi-organization campaign, coordinated by Civitas Public Affairs, that aims to reduce the influence of money in politics by 2021.” 15

Jonathan Soros, the son of George, is on the Victory 2021 executive committee, and is involved in its work. 16 The Victory 2021 Plan incorporates the Open Society Foundations’ work as one of four pillars. 17

References

  1. Issue One. Benevity Cause Portal. Accessed September 26, 2020. https://causes.benevity.org/causes/840-320384285
  2. Issue One. Benevity Cause Portal. Accessed September 26, 2020. https://causes.benevity.org/causes/840-320384285
  3. Open Society Foundations U.S. Programs Board Meeting. February 11-12, 2016. Accessed September 26, 2020. https://fdik.org/soros.dcleaks.com/download/index.html%3Ff=%252Ffeb%25202016%2520usp%2520board%2520book.pdf&t=us
  4. Markay, Lachlan. “Brock Conference Organizers Embody Dems’ Big Money Problem.” Washington Free Beacon. January 23, 2017. Accessed September 26, 2020. https://freebeacon.com/politics/brock-conference-organizers-embody-dems-big-money-problem/
  5. Democracy Alliance 2020 Investment Portfolio. Fall 2016. Accessed September 26, 2020. https://www.influencewatch.org/app/uploads/2019/04/Democracy-Alliance-2020-Investment-Portfolio-Report.pdf
  6. Democracy Alliance 2020 Investment Portfolio. Fall 2016. Accessed September 26, 2020. https://www.influencewatch.org/app/uploads/2019/04/Democracy-Alliance-2020-Investment-Portfolio-Report.pdf
  7. Democracy Alliance 2020 Investment Portfolio. Fall 2016. Accessed September 26, 2020. https://www.influencewatch.org/app/uploads/2019/04/Democracy-Alliance-2020-Investment-Portfolio-Report.pdf
  8. Democracy Alliance 2020 Investment Portfolio. Fall 2016. Accessed September 26, 2020. https://www.influencewatch.org/app/uploads/2019/04/Democracy-Alliance-2020-Investment-Portfolio-Report.pdf
  9. Democracy Alliance 2020 Investment Portfolio. Fall 2016. Accessed September 26, 2020. https://www.influencewatch.org/app/uploads/2019/04/Democracy-Alliance-2020-Investment-Portfolio-Report.pdf
  10. Piper Fund. Democracy Alliance. Accessed September 26, 2020. https://democracyalliance.org/organization/piper-fund/
  11. Democracy Alliance 2020 Investment Portfolio. Fall 2016. Accessed September 26, 2020. https://www.influencewatch.org/app/uploads/2019/04/Democracy-Alliance-2020-Investment-Portfolio-Report.pdf
  12. Democracy Alliance 2020 Investment Portfolio. Fall 2016. Accessed September 26, 2020. https://www.influencewatch.org/app/uploads/2019/04/Democracy-Alliance-2020-Investment-Portfolio-Report.pdf
  13. Victory 2021. Issue One. June 8, 2015. September 26, 2020. https://www.issueone.org/colio/victory-2021/
  14. “The Leading Coalition on Campaign Finance Reform.” Prezi. April 24, 2015. Accessed September 26, 2020. https://prezi.com/njwczpzr8oky/the-leading-coalition-on-campaign-finance-reform/
  15. Markay, Lachlan. “Brock Conference Organizers Embody Dems’ Big Money Problem.” Washington Free Beacon. January 23, 2017. Accessed September 26, 2020. https://freebeacon.com/politics/brock-conference-organizers-embody-dems-big-money-problem/
  16. Open Society Foundations U.S. Programs Board Meeting. February 11-12, 2016. Accessed September 26, 2020. https://fdik.org/soros.dcleaks.com/download/index.html%3Ff=%252Ffeb%25202016%2520usp%2520board%2520book.pdf&t=us
  17. Open Society Foundations U.S. Programs Board Meeting. February 11-12, 2016. Accessed September 26, 2020. https://fdik.org/soros.dcleaks.com/download/index.html%3Ff=%252Ffeb%25202016%2520usp%2520board%2520book.pdf&t=us
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