Happy Labor Day! Today marks the home stretch of Autumn’s favorite race: The Most Important Election of Our Lives (Truly!). Yes, the 2026 Midterms are almost here. I hope you’re doing something fun with people you really like, because joy and community are what keeps us fortified us as we face the dire moment we’re in under Trump 2.0. I won’t go through the litany of daily horrors–I’m sure you have your own hair-on-fire list. It’s good to know that a lot of us have been doing whatever we can–hanging banners from overpasses, phone banking, protesting, calling our representatives, donating, affixing blame-deflecting decals to our Teslas – so thank you! It’s a reminder that we are not powerless, and that in fact momentum is on our side. That’s why the message I want to share is one of hope and resolve. 

Which is why you need to know about Movement Voter Project, an organization I donate to and volunteer with because MVP works tirelessly and effectively to get our country back on track. With your help, MVP aims to make 2026 too big to rig, win the mid-terms, and prepare to win 2028 and beyond by funding local organizing in every swing state for the biggest blue wave possible. 

In a nutshell, Movement Voter Project is like a mutual fund for political giving. MVP does the research so you don’t have to, identifying and extensively vetting the most effective grassroots organizations around the country. We raise money from donors like you, then channel it where it has the most impact. Bonus: In addition to saving democracy, you get to hit “unsubscribe” and “stop” on all those annoying emails and texts! 

To recap, Movement Voter Project is:

• A one-stop shop for donors 
• To support local grassroots organizing
• In the places that matter most

Right now, flipping the House and – yes, let’s say it! – the Senate is the most immediate and effective way we have of stopping MAGA’s destructive spree. The places that matter most are the bright purple presidential battleground states and flippable congressional seats where we can win power in Washington. MVP is strategically focused on the places where small shifts in voter turnout can dramatically impact the electoral outcome. We’re targeting 44 flippable House seats, and 14 more we need to defend. So long, Mike Johnson! In the Senate, a net gain of four seats means we wrest that gavel from John Thune’s grip and put a halt to a horrendous string of Supreme Court nominees. MVP is targeting 4 Senate seats we need to hold, and 8 that we could possibly flip. 

Movement Voter Project is also focused on winning statewide offices charged with making sure elections are free and fair–secretaries of state, attorneys general, governors, state supreme courts. We all see the outrageous election interference Trump and his minions are trying, which makes it even more important that responsible people win these races, and that 2026 is too big to rig.

How do we do it? Through year-round local organizing, which is a completely different model from the post-Labor Day, candidate-driven scramble we’re used to. Candidate campaigns are important, but they’re built to vanish. They come in with a temporary crew to ask for your vote, and spend most of their money on consultants and ads. Then, win or lose, they disappear after Election Day, like a sandcastle vanishing with the tides. 

MVP offers a radically different model: instead of funding political candidates, we fund a movement of grassroots groups who work all year, every year, listening to and building trust among people who are often the most left behind, and thus the most disaffected and least likely to vote. We operate on the premise that local communities, not MVP, should decide the issues they care about and the candidates who best represent them. Ours is a big tent approach that includes working class voters, young people, people of color, queer voters, and rural voters. 

Here’s why local organizing is the most effective way of creating political and social change from the bottom up:

• Local organizers know their neighbors. They are trusted messengers in their communities, not out-of-state volunteers parachuting in to knock doors right before an election. 
• Local Organizers have real conversations where they listen, build trust, and empower everyday people. They understand local issues because those issues affect them too. Local organizers have multiple interactions with potential voters in the course of the year, and excel at bringing people who are irregular or non-voters into the political process by showing how much their voices matter.
• Plus, local organizers stick around – they remain in their communities building power and relationships, and holding elected officials accountable. 

There is an important difference between simply mobilizing voters right before election day and organizing communities to achieve long-term power. 

A great example of this comes from MVP partner Down Home North Carolina. More than a decade ago, Down Home heard a clear concern from rural communities: hospitals were closing and health care was disappearing. North Carolina Republicans refused to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act.

So Down Home organized regular folks to talk to their neighbors, write their representatives, show up at hearings. They even organized the massive delivery of thousands of hand-drawn valentines to all state legislators to drive home the necessity of Medicaid expansion. Finally, seeing the downside of further obstinance, Republican lawmakers found their hearts–or at least the brains to survive politically–and in 2023 joined Democrats to pass Medicaid Expansion. Democratic Governor Roy Cooper signed it into law, with Down Homies proudly by his side.

This made more than 600,000 North Carolinians eligible for healthcare. That’s the power of sustained local organizing. Our dollars helped make that happen. By the way, Governor Cooper is now on his way to becoming Senator Cooper. Your dollars will also help flip that crucial Senate seat.

Impressive, right? Sure, but aren’t there lots of great groups? Yes, and MVP is proud to be part of a growing ecosystem nurturing the progress America needs. But here’s why I especially support Movement Voter Project, and why I hope you’ll join me:

MVP doesn’t just FUND groups; we help BUILD them.

• The key ingredient in MVP’s secret sauce is our experienced team of state and regional advisors with deep experience in organizing and politics. They live in the places where they work and understand the realities on the ground. In addition to vetting and prioritizing grant requests from the partner groups, MVP advisors offer strategic guidance for engagement and voter turnout, rigorous political analysis, metrics for measuring performance, and tech tools. They help our partners build skills, develop leadership, create coalitions, and scale up their operations to meet the moment. 
• This moment also requires investment in new media and savvy digital organizing as well as election protection. MVP’s got that covered, too.
• With a keen eye on changes in the political landscape, MVP is very nimble, moving money quickly where it’s most needed. 
• Another benefit is that while MVP invests most donations in battleground areas, they fund and advise hundreds of groups in more than 40 states, seeding the ground to grow long-term progressive power throughout the country. After all, Georgia and Arizona didn’t just magically turn from ruby red to purple overnight. It took the investments in and persistence of year-round organizing. That’s the kind of long-term vision and commitment we need to bring about lasting and positive change.

Of course, movements for progress require a movement of donors!

Think of MVP Partner groups as the frontlines, and we the donors as the supply lines. Both are crucial to success. Since its founding in 2016, MVP has moved over $174 million dollars in partisan funds contributed by more than 34,000 donors to over 600 groups in 45 states. 

Luckily, the last key ingredient is right here: people like you and me, everyone who knows that donating is a crucial form of activism. It’s all of us, and together we can make the midterms too big to rig, overcome the current dangerous, corrupt regime, and build a better and lasting future. Here’s how:

• Give BIG – because the moment demands it! With our democracy and our planet on the line, now is the time to STRETCH! Giving big means something different for everyone. For some of us, giving big might be $100, for others giving big would be $1,000, and for a few of us, giving big might be $10,000 or more. Whatever it means for you to stretch, you’ll know it when you feel it!
• Give NOW – because it’s crunch time!
• Give Monthly to sustain this movement – even if we flip the House and/or Senate on November 3, this fight won’t be over in 2026.
  • MVP’s grassroots partners will need our support in 2027 and beyond to continue building power at the grassroots. Your monthly contribution helps create a predictable income stream for this important work.
• Volunteer – MVP has lots of fun and engaging ways to get involved.
• Help host a house party – it’s a fun way to bring people together to have fun, learn more, and raise money for MVP.
• Check out MVP’s website at movement.vote.
• Spread the word by being a trusted messenger: tell your friends, relatives, neighbors, co-workers, and others in your circle about MVP. It will mean so much more than a random message from a stranger. 

Thank you so much for your support! Let’s enjoy the fruits of our labor, and go win this thing!