Money and Politics Program 2010 Annual Report

Joyce efforts in 2010 centered on two tasks that come every 10 years: the US Census and redistricting of state legislatures and Congresses that follows the population count. The Foundation supported organizing around the Midwest to make sure residents were accurately counted, and at the same time laid the groundwork for redistricting reforms.

Counting Us In
The US Census is a major generator of temporary jobs and a minor civic duty. But, as the Census Bureau’s website points out, the Founders’ plan to count every person in the new country and use the results to determine representation in Congress was also a significant political reform: “Previously censuses had been used mainly to tax or confiscate property or to conscript youth into military service. The genius of the Founders was taking a tool of government and making it a tool of political empowerment for the governed over their government.”

Recognizing that getting an accurate count two centuries later remains a major empowerment issue, the Joyce Foundation supported efforts both in Illinois and regionally to ensure that communities that are often undercounted participated fully this time around.

The Foundation organized Count Me In, a consortium of 10 funders that gave $1.2 million to ethnic and community-based groups throughout Illinois to encourage local residents to complete and mail back the Census forms. The effort succeeded: Chicago boosted its response rate five percentage points over its 2000 rate, giving it the second biggest improvement of the 25 largest cities in the United States. And across the state, the 13 cities in which Count Me In nonprofits did Census awareness work had participation rates that were stronger than those in comparable cities without Count Me In grantees.

In Illinois and in other states, Joyce also supported a variety of nonprofits to boost the count. Despite significant barriers in 2010—the foreclosure crisis, immigration raids, and natural disasters—Ohio and Minnesota exceeded their 2000 participation rates, while Michigan matched its 2000 performance, and Wisconsin was just a point under its 2000 rate.

Joyce Foundation president Ellen S. Alberding noted that state and city efforts as well as a push by the Census Bureau had helped produce the increases, but added: “From the pattern of the results and the reports we got from the field, we’re confident that the efforts of nonprofit organizations that are seen as trusted voices in their communities also made a major difference.”

Drawing the Lines
While community groups were making sure residents were counted, political reform groups—including some who worked on the Census—were organizing to make sure citizen voices would be heard in the subsequent redistricting process. The Foundation provided support for coalitions in five states (Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin) and for reform groups participating in each.

The reform groups can draw on several resources developed in 2010, including mapping software created by the Public Mapping Project and an updated Citizens Guide to Redistricting created by the Brennan Center for Justice.

Providing support and coordination for the whole effort is the Midwest Democracy Network, a regional alliance of political reform, civil rights, and other groups. Leah Rush, the Network’s executive director, says the reformers’ goals are modest but important: “We want an open, transparent redistricting process, which provides avenues for meaningful public participation, and we want greater protection for minority voting rights. All of these should lead to reduced manipulation of district lines and voters.”

Making a Difference
The redistricting strategy and the Foundation’s broad commitment to Midwest political reform were developed under the leadership of Lawrence Hansen, the Foundation’s Vice President from 1994 to 2010. When Larry passed away in November 2010, reform advocates all over the country mourned his loss. “Larry Hansen was one of those rare people who took issues, politics, and history seriously and actually did something concrete to make things better,” said one friend. “His was a life of purpose and he made a difference.”

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