Progressive elections groups in disarray?
LEAD NC and New North Carolina Project seem to be hitting 'reset'
Progressive groups focusing on elections seem to be in disarray based on two recent reports.
WFAE’s Steve Harrison reported LEAD NC notes the group helped put up Democratic candidates in all districts in 2018 but, in essence, ceded 14 seats in the Senate and 30 in the House by not fielding a candidate in 2020.
Harrison writes the group is going through a “massive reset,” which includes Executive Director April Harley resigning in February and an email going out that said in order for the group to succeed, “additional staff changes were warranted.” And Harrison says no one seems to be talking about what that means:
Harley, the former executive director, said she couldn’t discuss what’s going on at the group because of “confidentiality.”
Former Mecklenburg State Rep. Chaz Beasley, who is a co-chair of the Lead NC board, also declined to answer any questions about the shakeup and its plans moving forward. The group’s revenue in 2020 was roughly $320,000, according to its tax form.
Another group called New North Carolina Project (NNCP) appears to be in disarray or possibly folding, according to a report by The Assembly:
“The New North Carolina Project, an 18-month-old progressive organization that seeks to boost turnout among the state’s Black and brown voters, laid off its staff of 20 last week, director Aimy Steele told The Assembly.
For now, the project will be “volunteer-led,” Steele said. “We have no paid staff, including myself."
Modeled on former Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams’ New Georgia Project, the North Carolina version launched in August 2021 with $2 million in the bank.
Apparently, that $2 million didn’t go very far and neither did the Abrams model.
North Carolina Republicans captured a supermajority in the Senate and were one seat shy of a supermajority in the House. Republican candidates also surged in municipal races, including winning around 75% of all partisan school board seats.
But the most important wins were judicial. Republicans swept both the Court of Appeals and State Supreme Court races. Consequentially, the supreme court flipped from a 4-3 Democrat majority to a 5-2 Republican majority.
LEAD NC and NNCP aren’t the only progressive groups having major issues.
Late last month, the far-left “anti-racism” group Triangle Showing Up for Racial Justice (TSURJ) sent a letter out to its followers indicating they were shutting down and leaders were tired out.
“With hearts both open and heavy, we are writing to let you know that the TSURJ Chapter is taking an official pause, closing our doors for now, until and if another crew of energized people emerge to re-form the group,” the letter reads.
More To The Story
Harrison had noted that LEAD NC had ties to the NC Democratic Party but didn’t mention the group’s partnership with Blueprint NC.
Fun fact to bear in mind as one continues reading: Sitting Democratic NC Associate Justice Anita Earls was on the board of Blueprint NC in the years leading up to her run for state supreme court.
For those unfamiliar with the history, in 2013, Blueprint NC gained notoriety after a strategy memo it shared with its large list of far-left and progressive organizations was leaked to the press.
The memo instructed its partners to attack all Republican elected officials, but in particular, then-Governor Pat McCrory:
• “Crippl(e) their leaders (GovMcCrory, House Speaker Tillis, Senate leader Berger etc.)”
• “Eviscerate the leadership and weaken their ability to govern.”
• “Pressure McCrory at every public event.”
• “Slam him when he contradicts his promises.”
The attack memo was clearly partisan and political in nature and was therefore a no-no, given Blueprint NC’s 501(c)(3) status. It’s worth noting Blueprint was created by the left-leaning N.C. Justice Center, located in Raleigh. Seed money and operating funding came also came from the left through the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation.
Blueprint NC has kept a low profile ever since and has been supplying funding to certain partners in its coalition to conduct GOTV efforts, registration drives, and other election-related activities. That’s unsurprising given that Blueprint has become affiliated with State Voices, a nationwide coalition of left-leaning nonprofits focused on GOTV and infrastructure to turn out votes for progressive causes.
Despite bringing in millions for years, no 990 forms beyond 2018 when the group reported $4,869,352 in revenue.
In the 2018 filing, the director of the board was Allison Riggs, former partner of Earls at Southern Coalition for Social Justice. Riggs now sits on the Court of Appeals after being appointed in Dec. 2022 by Governor Roy Cooper.
Even More To The Story
The New North Carolina Project appears to be even more closely tied to the NC Democratic Party than LEAD NC, but apparently with less success.
Its leader, Dr. Aimy Steele, is a former Cabarrus County teacher and principal as well as a former Democratic candidate for NC House District 82 both in 2018 and 2020. According to her LinkedIn, she is the CEO of Reach Consulting, LLC, an organization that appears to coach kids on how to get into college.
Bree Hendrick co-launched New NC Project with Steele. Per her LinkedIn bio, she has mainly worked in medical fields and organizations but was the campaign chief of staff for Democrat Terry LeGrand's unsuccessful 2020 bid to unseat Republican Sen. Joy Krawiec representing Forsyth and Stokes Counties. The NC Democratic Party dropped $1,600,434 into that race. Legrand also lost in 2018 in an effort to unseat then-Forsyth Rep. Debra Conrad.
Creation filings accessed at the N.C. Secretary of State for New NC Project includes Steele’s name, but also freshman Senator Mary Wills Bode (D-Wake), Dr. Karthik Balasubramanian, a consistent donor to the NC Democratic Party according to FollowTheMoney.org.
A May 2021 articles of incorporation filing listed Steele, NNCP Board member Daniel Valdez, and the NC Democratic Party's new Vice Chair Jonah Garson.
New NC Project has (or had) two boards, The New North Carolina Project Board and the New North Carolina Project Foundation Board.
Former statehouse Democratic Rep. Chaz Beasley sat on the Foundation board, while Bode was named the group's "C4 Board Chair" in Sept. 2021. Also on the board of NNCP was Dr. Kimberly Hardy, the new second vice chair of the NCDP.
The launch party for NNCP in October 2021 also included high-profile Democrats and elected officials such as Sens. Sydney Batch (D-Wake), Natalie Murdock (D-Durham), and Jay Chaudhuri (D-Mecklenburg) as well as Rep. Brandon Lofton (D-Mecklenburg).
NNCP held fundraisers on a seemingly regular schedule and often featured a prominent Democrat. An example is one of their first in-person events featuring NC Attorney General Josh Stein during the summer of 2022. The tickets were pricey; starting at $35 and reaching $5,000.
In Feb. 2023 the same time frame that Steele was talking to The Assembly, filings with the state show that New North Carolina Project Incorporated and its related Foundation changed their names to New North Carolina Project and New North Carolina Action First respectively.
New North Carolina Project is a 501(c)3 and the New North Carolina Action First, is a 501(c)4 dark money group focused on courting and earning the vote of "black and brown" North Carolinians.
Despite the reorganizing and fundraising, no 990 tax forms were located or are available to view for either entity.