NOPE volunteers and donors set new records for donating time and money. Despite the results at the polls, we are resolved not to give in to despair or defeatism. Together, we’ll cultivate hope and continue to say NOPE to those who threaten our democracy.
Also on the “plus” side: NOPE experienced phenomenal growth. This positions us well to take on the unprecedented challenges arising in 2025.
Subscriptions to our Weekly Update bulletins doubled from 3,000 to more than 6,000.
A record-breaking 700 people volunteered through NOPE.
Our donors also broke records for both amounts and total number or participants.
We launched “Democracy Online,” a new social media program, and forged new partnerships with our local grassroots organizing partners.
Our seven battleground states provided bright spots. Several analyses showed Democrats performed better in these states than nationwide.
Democrats won four out of the five U.S. Senate races in the battlegrounds.
WI: Dems flipped 14 state legislative seats and broke a Republican supermajority in the state Senate.
NC: Dems won 5 key executive positions including Governor, Lt. Governor, and Attorney General. They also broke a Republican supermajority in the state legislature.
PA: Dems retained hard-fought control of the state’s House of Representatives.
We supported a fully-vetted slate of seven organizing groups working primarily in communities of color - one in each of our 2024 battleground states. Our seven groups reached over a million potential voters through their voter contact, registration, and mobilization programs. Their work contributed to numerous victories in critical down-ballot elections.
Donors contributed over $1,700,000 through NOPE in 2024. The number of donors has increased by 185% since 2018. Consistent with our strategy, donors allocated two-thirds of all donations to grassroots organizing partners, with the remainder going to candidates. We successfully promoted recurring monthly donations that allowed these groups to hire and make long-term plans. We also improved opportunities for charitable giving to our partners’ community engagement affiliates, which support efforts like voter registration.
NOPE continued its tradition of dynamic public meetings that presented Democratic candidates and grassroots organizers, highlighted volunteering opportunities, and provided opportunities to donate. In this election year two of our meetings focused on the nearby state of Pennsylvania.
In July 2024 NOPE broke new ground by collaborating with Silver Spring Progressive Action and 20 additional grassroots groups to present award-winning historian Heather Cox Richardson. Ms. Richardson’s reminder that each of us “must act to protect the guardrails of democracy” remains powerfully relevant today.
“Thank you for your leadership, mentoring, and organizational wizardry this cycle. Although it’s not the outcome we wanted, we know it would have been much worse without the tireless efforts of volunteers, including the growing NOPE community…I appreciate so much the strategy, professionalism, clear communications, and on-site support in PA.”
— A first-time NOPE volunteer
Once again, NOPE set records. More than 270 canvassers knocked on more than 23,000 doors in Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Wisconsin. NOPE recruited and organized canvassers in Pennsylvania every weekend in the fall, and sponsored a full week of canvassing in late October. All of the candidates we worked for were incredibly grateful.
“I wanted to let you know I have such gratitude for NOPE, and you guys really walking the walk, not just talking the talk…over and over again…You really helped us put on a strong enough campaign that folks across the country have taken notice, including the Democratic leadership, who is urging me to give it another go.” — Janelle Stelson, US House candidate for Pennsylvania’s 10th District, shown on the left in our photo.
Democracy Writers also had a banner year. Working with Vote Forward, NOPE volunteers wrote more than 20,000 letters - over four times their original goal. Activity leads developed three different strategies, so volunteers could write on their own, attend NOPE’s in-person and virtual writing-parties, or organize their own gatherings with a helpful-step-by-step guide.
NOPE worked with Red2Blue, the U.S. Democratic Party, and Pennsylvania Democrats to identify the most meaningful opportunities for phone calls to turn out the vote. In the last few weeks before the elections, volunteers were calling daily – and having meaningful conversations with swing voters. Our phonebank lead provided both training sessions and individual coaching to help new volunteers master technical challenges. Phonebanking “Zoom rooms” and parties built enthusiasm and camaraderie.
The Democracy Online team launched in early 2024 with the goal of amplifying Democratic messaging on social media. Team leaders posted new content weekly for readers to like/love, forward and comment on. By November more than 175 people had joined to spread positive messages (like the one in our photo) on Facebook, Instagram and X, with Bluesky replacing X in January 2025.
Over 100 people signed up for introductory sessions with VoProPros, NOPE’s go-to organization for voter protection work. A majority of those volunteers reported that they later engaged in a voter protection project, and a few became leaders for VoProPros. NOPE’s voter protection leads also provided additional training sessions and individual coaching.
VoProPros ran dozens of projects in multiple states. Many focused on “curing” ballots with minor technical errors. This work made a difference. For example, in North Carolina, state Supreme Court Justice Allison Riggs was down by 10,000 votes on election night. After counting cured and provisional ballots, she is leading by 734 votes. (Due to challenges filed by her Republican opponent, as of Febraury 7, the race had not yet been officially called.)
2024 was not our year, but there are many elections to come and many fights to be won. Winning elections is NOPE’s forte and will remain our focus. We’ll be active in the Wisconsin Supreme Court race coming up in April, and in the Virginia legislative and gubernatorial races this fall.
We also realize that unprecedented challenges call for unprecedented actions. We are now sharing ideas on fighting back against the Trump administration. If you are ready to get back into the fight, read our bulletins and join us. And don’t give up hope.
“…For there is always light,
if only we’re brave enough to see it,
if only we’re brave enough to be it.”
— Amanda Gorman, “The Hill We Climb”