VoteOurVoice is a left-leaning monitoring organization that reports on the policy positions of elected officials. The organization tracks politicians both in the United States and around the world andclaims that its work “creates communities” in order to “bring positive change to their political systems.” The organization lists several corporate partners, including the international finance giant Goldman Sachs and the Maryland-based environmentalist consulting firm D+R International, which pushes for expanding electric vehicle use and the associated infrastructure. 1 2
VoteOurVoice is a signatory to the Declaration for American Democracy, an initiative of the Public Citizen Foundation, the sister organization of the left-wing lobbying group Public Citizen. The declaration calls for a broad range of left-wing voting policies and has received support from hundreds of other groups, including the election reform promoter Common Cause and major labor unions such as the American Federation of Teachers and the Service Employees International Union. 3
The founder of VoteOurVoice is entrepreneur Richard Hill, who previously worked for several major financial firms, including Citigroup, Barclays, and Coldwell Banker Richard Ellis (CBRE). 4
Founder’s Statements
In July 2021, VoteOurVoice director Richard Hill released a statement on behalf of the organization calling the riot at the United States Capitol in January of that year an “insurrection.” Hill also claimed that a substantial number of those involved were affiliated with white supremacist groups. 7
Background
VoteOurVoice is legally structured as a public benefit corporation, which ostensibly requires it to engage in activity which improves society in addition to serving its stakeholders. A number of leading brands that back left-wing activist causes, including Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream and the Patagonia apparel company, are registered as public benefit corporations, and VoteOurVoice claims to give 10 percent of its profits to activist groups. 8 9
Leadership
Richard Hill is the founder and chief executive officer of VoteOurVoice. 10 He was previously a vice president at Citigroup, a bond trader at Barclays, and an industrial real estate broker at CBRE. Hill received a master’s degree in applied economics from New York University and an MBA from the California State Polytechnic University Pomona, as well as a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of California, Irvine. 11
References
- VoteOurVoice. Accessed March 12, 2023. https://www.voteourvoice.com/
- D+R International. Accessed March 12, 2023. https://drintl.com/
- Declaration for American Democracy. Accessed March 12, 2023. https://dfadcoalition.org/
- “Richard Hill.” Techstars DC Startup Week 2019. Accessed March 12, 2023. https://dcstartupweek2019.sched.com/rhill20
- “Hearing on the…” VoteOurVoice. TikTok. July 28, 2021. Accessed March 12, 2023.
@voteourvoice #voteourvoice #democracy #insurrection2021 #insurrection #protest #heroes #officerfanone #officerdunn #officergonell #officerhodges
In December 2022, Hill released another statement on the organization’s social media in which he celebrated the victory of Senator Raphael Warnock (D-GA) in the midterm elections. 5 [1] “Raphael Warnock wins…” VoteOurVoice. TikTok. July 28, 2021. Accessed March 12, 2023. https://www.tiktok.com/@voteourvoice/video/7174525288074792234[/note
Hill has argued for making voting mandatory, claiming that legal penalties would be a more effective incentive than appeals to societal duty. He cited countries that mandate voting as examples for the U.S. to follow. 6 Hassan Karimi. “Interview with Richard Hill, Founder & CEO of VoteOurVoice.” Disruptive Technologists. December 17, 2020. Accessed March 12, 2023. https://www.disruptivetechnologists.com/blog/interview-with-richard-hill-founder-ceo-of-voteourvoice/
- “About Us.” VoteOurVoice. Accessed March 12, 2023. https://www.voteourvoice.com/about-us.php
- “Public Benefit Corporation.” Legal Information Institute. Accessed March 12, 2023. https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/public_benefit_corporation
- VoteOurVoice LinkedIn employee page, LinkedIn. Accessed March 13, 2023. https://www.linkedin.com/search/results/people/?currentCompany=%5B%2240732425%22%5D&origin=COMPANY_PAGE_CANNED_SEARCH&sid=Q7s
- “Richard Hill.” Techstars DC Startup Week 2019. Accessed March 12, 2023. https://dcstartupweek2019.sched.com/rhill20