Mission meets Democracy: Nonprofit Voter Engagement

Nonprofits are trusted messengers in their communities and can play a meaningful role in helping people participate in elections while remaining strictly nonpartisan. In this program, Gwen Stembridge of Nonprofit VOTE will share practical, compliant strategies for integrating voter engagement into everyday nonprofit work, from sharing registration and election information to encouraging turnout through mission-aligned outreach.

Participants will learn what 501(c)(3) organizations can and cannot do during election season, how to keep voter engagement activities nonpartisan, and how to choose tactics that fit their organization’s capacity, audience, and goals. The session will also highlight tools, examples, and resources nonprofits can use to make voting more accessible and inclusive for the people and communities they serve.

Gwen Stembridge (she/her), Director of Education and Partnerships, comes to this work with experience as a community organizer, policy analyst, volunteer program manager, and nonprofit professional. She has worked with and been trained by organizations such as AmeriCorps VISTA, the Episcopal Service Corps, the Industrial Areas Foundation, United Way, Points of Light Foundation/HandsOn, Leadership Lorain County, SURJ (Showing Up for Racial Justice), The Catalyst Project’s Anne Braden Program, The inaugural Equality Federation Game Change Cohort, and The Management Center.

Her most recent professional experience has focused on LGBTQ+ education and advocacy at the local, state, and national level at both Equality Ohio and The Trevor Project. She is excited to bring her community organizing and training background to strengthen the existing training and partnership opportunities at Nonprofit VOTE and make our democracy more accessible to all.

Raised in the Atlanta area, she lived the past 13 years in Ohio, primarily Cleveland, and has just settled back in the Southeast with her wife and family.