The Voter Formation Project: Engaging First-Time Voters of Color

Shifting Electoral Dynamics and the Rise of the Voter Formation Project

Despite recent successes, the 2020 election revealed significant gaps in Democrats’ understanding of the American voting public. Unexpected support for Donald Trump among Latino voters in states like Florida and Arizona challenged long-held assumptions about the voting patterns of the growing Hispanic population.

The Limitations of Traditional Polling

Furthermore, polling data once again proved inaccurate in predicting election outcomes, demonstrating that the failures of the 2016 election cycle were not isolated incidents. Simultaneously, Georgia experienced a pivotal shift, voting blue for the first time in over two decades.

A New Approach to Voter Engagement

Tatenda Musapatike, formerly a political advertising specialist at Facebook, now believes the current political landscape presents a unique opportunity to broaden the electorate. Leaving Facebook in 2019 to focus on civic engagement, she is poised to launch a new initiative.

Launching the Voter Formation Project

This month marks Musapatike’s transition from her role directing campaigns at the Democratic nonprofit Acronym to spearhead the Voter Formation Project. This new organization, a 501(c)3, will concentrate on reaching first-time Black and brown voters through innovative digital strategies.

Acronym’s Early Efforts and Challenges

Acronym initially emerged as a response to Trump’s 2016 victory, aiming to establish a robust Democratic digital infrastructure to rival Republican efforts. However, the organization faced setbacks in 2020 with an unsuccessful and problematic vote tabulation app that caused disruption during the Iowa caucuses.

The “People’s Power Grab” and Continued Support

Despite this challenge, Acronym pursued other initiatives, including the 2019 “People’s Power Grab” voter drive led by Musapatike. This campaign successfully mobilized unregistered voters of color in states such as Arizona, Florida, and Georgia. Acronym will continue to provide support to the new organization.

Expanding on Past Successes

The Voter Formation Project will build upon the foundation laid by the People’s Power Grab. With Georgia serving as a successful case study and crucial voting rights legislation under consideration, the project’s importance is increasingly apparent.

Musapatike’s Expertise and Vision

Musapatike’s background uniquely positions her to lead this endeavor. Before her work at Acronym, she spent three and a half years at Facebook, collaborating with progressive super PACs and nonprofits on their digital advertising campaigns.

Lessons Learned from Facebook

These teams were dissolved following controversies surrounding the 2016 U.S. election and allegations of preferential treatment given to the Trump campaign. This experience provided valuable insights into the complexities of digital political advertising.

A First-of-Its-Kind Operation

Musapatike shared with TechCrunch that the Voter Formation Project will address a gap in digital voter outreach in several ways. Notably, it will be the first digital-only operation led by a Black woman in this field, and aims to raise at least $4 million this year.

“I’m really excited about the sea change that we’re seeing in terms of valuing the work, and trusting Black women to do the work,” Musapatike stated.

Strategic Implementation and Budget Allocation

The Voter Formation Project will primarily utilize digital advertising to reach potential voters. Musapatike believes that acknowledging the current uncertainty in political assumptions will allow for more effective engagement with first-time voters from communities of color.

Targeted Outreach

“Oftentimes, I think a lot of groups that do digital work predominantly focus on either young people or individual communities of color,” she explained. “We’re really focused on the digital piece, and then targeting people of color to figure out what works for our different communities.”

Beyond Advertising: Training and Technology

While digital advertising will constitute approximately half of the group’s initial budget, Musapatike also emphasizes the importance of providing digital training and education to other voter outreach programs, particularly smaller organizations lacking extensive digital expertise.

The project will also leverage proprietary advertising technology designed to guide new voters through the registration process and create a voting plan, tracking their progress for re-engagement if needed.

Challenging Conventional Wisdom

Musapatike began questioning traditional ad strategies while at Facebook, observing a repetition of assumptions about voter motivations.

“We saw the same type of assumptions about what moved people, what inspired people, what got people to register being repeated,” she said. “I rarely had the opportunity to see really different and experimental thought coming to campaigns. And I wanted to be able to run the campaigns that I dreamed about in my head.”

The Power of Culturally Relevant Ads

For example, conventional wisdom suggested that voter registration ads should appear formal and official. However, testing revealed that “culturally relevant” ads, resembling organic social media content and featuring diverse representation, were significantly more effective with younger voters of color.

“And so that said to us we need to do a lot more digging into what works for who, and not necessarily say that same tactic works for everyone, because we just don’t know if that’s true or not,” Musapatike said.

Focusing on Untapped Potential

Rather than relying on demographic shifts alone, Democrats can proactively engage a significant pool of potential voters. The Voter Formation Project identifies the South, particularly Texas and Virginia, as key areas of focus.

“These are places where we have failed in elections that are occurring either at the municipal or the state level,” Musapatike noted, acknowledging the South’s conservative leanings while highlighting its vulnerability to voter suppression efforts.

Addressing Disparities in Voter Turnout

“For that we are running programs in states where there are disproportionately fewer people of color voting compared to their older, whiter counterparts,” Musapatike said. “Because once those people have access to voting, it could change the outcomes.”

Navigating the Challenges of Social Media

Addressing concerns about advertising on platforms known to amplify misinformation and voter suppression, Musapatike asserted, “I just don’t believe in bringing a knife to a gunfight.”

Ambitious Goals for 2022

In the 2020 presidential election, Democrats won Georgia by a mere 12,000 votes. Recognizing the impact of even small increases in voter turnout, the Voter Formation Project has set a measurable goal: to register and mobilize half a million voters before the 2022 midterm elections.

“When there are a significant amount of people who don’t have access to the ballot box, [elections] are no longer a fair contest of ideas,” Musapatike concluded. “It becomes a game of suppression, which is not what the United States is about.”