Our Staff
Allison Pulliam, Co-Director (she/her)
Allison Pulliam serves as one of the Co-Directors for the Declaration for American Democracy. She comes to DFAD with almost two decades of work in political engagement, outreach and partnership development with a focus on centering and uplifting marginalized communities.
More About Allison
Prior to this role, Allison served as the Partnership Director for the Independent Strategic Research Collaborative. Allison also spent the 2018 and 2020 election cycles at MoveOn as the Elections Campaign Director, where she led the Candidate Endorsement Process among other political tasks. Allison worked in the Obama Administration, first at the White House Office of Presidential Personnel and then at the General Services Administration working as the Special Assistant in the Office of Small Business Utilization.
Working on the Obama 08 presidential campaign with stops in Iowa, Kansas, Ohio, Indiana and Michigan, holds a special place in her heart as that is where she was really able to hone her relational organizing skills. She looks forward to be able to bring her varied experiences to DFAD as we continue to fight for a democracy that works for
Christine Wood, Co-Director (she/her)
Christine Wood serves as a Co-Director for the Declaration for American Democracy. Prior to this role, Christine served as the Field Director for the coalition where she spearheaded our grassroots organizing work.
More About Christine
Christine’s background is in issue-based advocacy and electoral campaigns. Prior to her position with the Declaration for American Democracy Coalition, Christine worked on Public Citizen’s Democracy Is For People Campaign where she worked with coalitions in New York State on campaigns to expand voting rights and secure fair elections.
Prior to that, Christine served as the Field Director for a competitive Congressional campaign and did fieldwork in the 2016 electoral cycle. Christine got her start in issue-based advocacy working on the Climate Reality Projects’ 100% Renewable campaigns, where she led organizing efforts on several college campuses.
Through those experiences, Christine developed a passion for inspiring everyday people to take action, which continues to drive her work on securing sweeping democracy reform.
Cecilia Bernard, Grassroots Manager (she/her)
Cecilia Bernard is the Grassroots Manager for the Declaration for American Democracy coalition. Cecilia’s expertise is in electoral organizing and coalition building.
More About Cecilia
Most recently, Cecilia worked with Planned Parenthood Advocates of Iowa to gain momentum and build power in the Iowa legislature in order to protect and expand reproductive rights statewide.
She got her start as a campus organizer on Senator Elizabeth Warren’s Presidential Campaign in Des Moines, IA where she first developed her love of organizing.
Cecilia is looking forward to continuing to expand the movement for anti-corruption and restore power to the people through this role.
Aswar Rahman, Digital Content (he/him)
Aswar Rahman leads digital content creation for the Declaration for American Democracy. Aswar’s background is in electoral politics.
More About Aswar
He served as Digital Content Director for Senator Amy Klobuchar’s 2020 Presidential Campaign, and prior to that served as Digital Director for Representative Dean Phillips’ first Congressional run.
Aswar’s expertise is in digital strategy, graphic design and video production — he’s looking forward to be an asset to the over 150 members of the DFAD coalition.
Our Campaign Committee
The campaign committee is the chief decision-making body of DFAD entrusted with developing, overseeing, coordinating, and aligning the overall strategy and campaign plan to win. Campaign committee organizations are fully committed to the campaign, to sharing power, and to making a significant investment of time, talent, or treasure to the campaign. The campaign committee is chaired by the campaign director.
Dan Weiner
Director of Elections and Government Program
Brennan Center
Kirstin Dunham
Senior Legislative Counsel
Brennan Center
Wanda Mosley
National Field Director
Black Voters Matter Fund
Cliff Albright
Executive Director
Black Voters Matter Fund
Michael Sozan
Senior Fellow
Center for American Progress
Debra Perlin
Policy Director
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington
Aaron Scherb
Senior Director of Legislative Affairs
Common Cause
Porsha White
Vice President of Strategic Partnerships
End Citizens United
Fred Wertheimer
President
Democracy 21
Adam Smith
Vice President for Democracy Initiatives
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington
Angie Wells
Director of Education and Human Rights
Communications Workers of America
Tysianna Marino
Legislative Adviser
Communications Workers of America
Justin Kwasa
Voting Right Program Director
League of Conservation Voters
Doug Linder
Advocacy Director for Judiciary & Democracy
League of Conservation Voters
YT Bell
Senior Advisor, Voting
The Leadership Conference
Marge Baker
Executive Vice President for Policy and Program
People for the American Way
Rio Tazewell
Senior Campaigns Manager
People for the American Way
Lisa Gilbert
Executive Vice President
Public Citizen
Ashley Dwire
Director of State & Local Programs
SEIU
Isaiah Wilson
Senior Legislative Manager
SEIU
Tishan Weerasooriya
—
Stand Up America
To make progress on the issues that we care most about, such as health care, racial justice, reproductive rights, and the environment, we must build a system that serves the people rather than wealthy donors. Congress must pass the #FreedomToVoteAct. pic.twitter.com/lg3kmym7b1— Declaration for American Democracy - (@DFADCoalition) July 27, 2023
What would the Freedom to Vote Act achieve?
The Freedom to Vote Act is a bold and transformative legislative package that would create national standards to protect our freedom to vote, get big money out of politics, combat partisan election subversion, and guarantee that congressional districts are drawn to give fair representation for all.
Together we can realize a democracy that represents, reflects, and responds to all of us.
Protects Our Freedom to Vote
- Automatic Voter Registration and Online Voter Registration: Enacts an automatic voter registration system for each state through the state’s motor vehicle agency and ensures voters in all states have access to online voter registration.
- Election Day Holiday: Makes Election Day a public holiday.
- Uniform Early Voting: Ensures voters have access to at least 15 consecutive days of early voting for federal elections, including two weekends, while accommodating small election jurisdictions and vote-by-mail jurisdictions.
- Same Day Voter Registration: Ensures every state offers same day registration at a limited number of locations for the 2022 elections and at all polling locations by 2024, allowing election officials, especially in rural areas, time to implement the new requirements.
- Federal Minimum Standards on Vote by Mail and Drop Boxes: Ensures all voters can request a mail-in ballot, improves the delivery of election mail, and puts in place minimum standards to ensure drop boxes are available and accessible to all voters.
- Strengthens Voter List Maintenance Standards: Requires that the removal of voters from the rolls is done on the basis of reliable and objective evidence and prohibits the use of returned mail sent by third parties to remove voters.
- Counting of Provisional Ballots: Requires provisional ballots to count for all eligible races within a county, regardless of the precinct they were cast in.
- Standards for Voter Identification: Promotes voter confidence and access by requiring a uniform national standard for states that requires identification for in-person voting, and allowing voters to present a broad set of identification cards and documents in hard copy and digital form.
- Voting Rights Restoration for Returning Citizens: Restores the right to vote in federal elections for people who have served their time for felony convictions after they are released from prison.
- Expanded Voting Access Protections for the Disabled, Native Americans, Military, Overseas Voters, and Underserved Communities: Includes targeted protections to promote accessible voting to communities facing unique challenges.
Ensures Fair Representation in Government
- Bans Partisan Gerrymandering: Prevents states from adopting congressional maps that unduly favor a political party. Maps will be measured against concrete numerical thresholds for each state, created by political scientists using quantitative metrics of partisan fairness. Courts will also be able to look broadly at the maps and mapmakers’ intent to determine whether they are unduly favoring a political party.
- Strengthens Protections for Communities of Color: By bolstering Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, requiring districts be drawn to represent communities of interest, including communities that share racial, ethnic, or socioeconomic backgrounds.
- Requires States to Adopt Transparent and Fair Processes for Maps: Allows states to enact redistricting plans using their legislature, a commission, or any other entity — provided they hold public hearings, accept public input, adhere to transparency requirements, and explain how final plans adhere to the Voting Rights Act and the ban on partisan gerrymandering.
- Takes Effect Immediately and Applies to All 2022 Maps: Prevents any unfair maps ahead of the 2022 elections, and courts may not allow an illegal map to be used simply because an election is imminent. Any resident may sue their state in federal court for violating the redistricting provisions, and if the court finds the law has been violated, it may either draw a new map or require the state to redraw its map.
Reduces the Influence of Big Money in Politics
- Combatting Secret Money and Election Interference (DISCLOSE Act and Honest Ads Act): Requires super PACs, 501(c)(4) groups, and other organizations spending money in elections to disclose donors and shuts down the use of transfers between organizations to cloak the identity of contributors. Ensures that political ads sold online have the same transparency and disclosure requirements as ads sold on TV, radio, and satellite.
- State Election Assistance & Innovation Fund: Establishes a self-sustaining fund to finance critical investments in state-led innovations for our democracy and election infrastructure. The fund is financed through an additional assessment paid on federal fines, penalties, and settlements for certain tax crimes and corporate malfeasance. States would be allotted an annual distribution for eligible democracy and election-related investments. States could select to access their full distribution or a partial distribution, or roll over their distribution for future use.
- Nonpartisan Oversight of Federal Election Law: Improves the ability of the Federal Election Commission to carry out oversight and enforcement responsibilities.
- Stopping Illicit Super PAC Coordination: Creates “coordinated spender” category to ensure single-candidate super PACs do not operate as arms of campaigns.
Combats Partisan Election Subversion
- Preventing State Election Subversion: Establishes federal protections to insulate nonpartisan state and local officials who administer federal elections from undue partisan interference or control.
- Protection of Election Records, Election Infrastructure, and Ballot Tabulation: Strengthens protections for federal election records and election infrastructure in order to protect the integrity and security of ballots and voting systems.
- Voter-Verified Paper Ballots, Reliable Audits, and Voting System Upgrades: Requires states to use voting systems that use paper ballots that can be verified by voters and to implement reliable post-election audits. Also provides grants for states to purchase new and more secure voting systems and make cybersecurity improvements.
- Non-Partisan Election Official Recruitment and Training: Tasks the Election Assistance Commission with developing model training programs to recruit a new generation of election workers and provides dedicated grants for training and recruitment.
- Comprehensive Voting System Security Protections: Puts in place election vendor cybersecurity standards, including standards for manufacturing and assembling voting machines, among other key security measures.
- Establishing Duty to Report Foreign Election Interference: Creates a reporting requirement for federal campaigns to disclose certain foreign contacts.
What is the Declaration for American Democracy?
A Coalition of 260+ Member Organizations
The Declaration for American Democracy is an anti-oppression coalition working together to make the promise of democracy real for all of us.
We believe our democratic systems, institutions, and leaders must reflect, represent, and respect the diverse, multicultural nation that we are and have always been. For democracy to work for all of us, it must include all of us and address the deep systemic, institutional challenges that continue to block meaningful progress to this day. As America’s diversity continues to grow, so must our democracy.
Our Mission
Today our democracy faces crises on multiple fronts -- compounded by a deeply problematic history that has held us back from achieving an inclusive and equitable multiracial nation since our founding. Powerful corporations and wealthy special interests use their money and influence to shape public policy priorities. Extremist politicians are putting up deliberate barriers to block access to the ballot box and silence the voices of Black, Brown, Indigenous, Latinx, AAPI, low-income, LGBTQIA, disability, and other marginalized communities. State legislatures are manipulating Congressional maps to allow politicians to pick their voters and hoard power for their political parties. And our government has failed to respond after four years of a corrupt administration and Supreme Court decisions gutting voting rights protections and anti-corruption laws.
Working together, we are committed to passing national standards, including the Freedom to Vote Act, the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, and DC Statehood, to transform our political system and move our country closer to realizing the true promise of democracy. However, we will not be satisfied with any single reform and will continue to press for the structural changes necessary to rebalance power for the people and undo the historic harms that have barred communities that have been marginalized and denied political power since the founding of the United States.
We believe people of color, young people, people with disabilities, language minorities, and other historically disenfranchised communities should have equal access to the ballot and be equitably represented in government. We believe everyday people should have a stronger voice in elections than wealthy donors and special interests. And we believe our government should be transparent and accountable to the people.
Together we must ensure the freedom to vote is a fundamental American right and that the people -- regardless of our color, our background, or our zip code - hold the power, not the wealthy and corporations.
Our Vision
Therefore, we, the Declaration for American Democracy, are committed to working together to achieve this vision and model our values in how we work together. As a coalition, we will invest in each other and treat each other with respect. We will acknowledge and learn from our past, including the legacy of racism and white supremacy in our movement and democratic institutions. In decision making we will center Black, Brown, Indigenous, Latinx, AAPI, LGBTQIA, people with disabilities, language minorities, as well as other impacted communities. And we will invest in each other through professional development, collaborative grantmaking, and shared projects.
Our 260+ Member Organizations
