February 7, 2020

Contact: Mark Church, Chief Elections Officer & Assessor-County Clerk-Recorder
Alternate: Jim Irizarry, Assistant Chief Elections Officer & Assessor-County Clerk-Recorder

(Redwood City, CA) Mark Church, Chief Elections Officer and Assessor-County Clerk-Recorder, announced today the organizations which were awarded grants as part of the Registration & Elections Division’s voter outreach program.

“The goal of this program is to reach voters in areas with historically low turnout. By using community-based organizations, we believe we can reach voters directly and bring them into the democratic process,” said Church.

The Elections Division has allocated $150,000 to this program and has partnered with the Silicon Valley Community Foundation (SVCF) to provide oversight and assistance to the grant recipients. After conducting a Request for Proposal process, the foundation reviewed seventeen proposals before selecting ten to receive funding, listed below:

  • Services, Immigrant Rights and Education Network
  • League of Women Voters - Southern San Mateo County
  • Daly City Youth Health Center
  • One East Palo Alto
  • Daly City Peninsula Partnership Collaborative
  • Pilipino Bayanihan Service Center
  • Peninsula Conflict Resolution Center
  • Boys and Girls Club of Northern San Mateo
  • Nuestra Casa de East Palo Alto
  • South San Francisco Public Library

A $24,000 grant was also provided to the Thrive Alliance to assist in the administrative coordination of the program, with $12,000 of these funds allocated from the SVCF’s discretionary funding. Funds allocated to the foundation were provided from the County’s Voter Education and Outreach funding for the Fiscal Year 2019-2020. For the upcoming March election, $477,000 was budgeted for this purpose.

“Over the past two years, we have implemented many new laws and policies to make voting in San Mateo County more accessible than ever before,” said Church. “But it is equally important that voters have the information they need to cast their ballot. This program gives communities the tools they need to educate and empower their voters. It truly is a collaborative effort, from the neighborhood to the county level.”

For more information, please call 650.312.5222, visit www.smcacre.org or follow us on Twitter and Instagram @smcvote.

Related Contacts

Mark Church

Assessor-County Clerk-Recorder and Chief Elections Officer
555 County Center
Redwood City, CA 94063-1665Get Directions
Phone:
650.363.4988

Jim Irizarry

Asst. Assessor-County Clerk-Recorder & Asst. Chief Elections Officer
555 County Center
Redwood City, CA 94063-1665Get Directions
Phone:
650.363.4988