A District-based foundation has awarded one of its largest grants ever to the group coordinating lobbying efforts for D.C. congressional representation.
DC Vote will use the $250,000 award from the Public Welfare Foundation to continue its national marketing effort and bring attention to the District’s disenfranchisement, said Kevin Kiger, DC Vote spokesman. The grant is the largest private award DC Vote has received in its nine-year history, though it is only half the $500,000 grant provided last year by the D.C. government for a public awareness campaign.
“In addition to the support we’ve received from the mayor, the council and Congress and our allies, our donors are also stepping up,” IlirZherka, DC Vote executive director, said last week.
The Public Welfare Foundation, which promotes civic participation through grants, has been a DC Vote supporter in the past — usually $50,000 at a time. The foundation’s board voted Friday to multiply that donation by five.
“Our sense of things, from what we’ve learned, is this is a moment where that problem of a lack of representation can be addressed,” said Deborah Leff, the foundation’s president. “We wanted to make a statement that this is a critical opportunity.”
With Zherka at his side, Mayor Adrian Fenty announced Friday that he will take up the voting rights cause, leading a Capitol Hill lobby day Feb. 15 and a march on the Hill on April 16, D.C. Emancipation Day. Legislation currently before a House committee would expand the House by two seats, with one going to the District and the other to Utah.
DC Vote, Fenty said, has the lead role in the fight for congressional representation.
