Formed in the fall of 2006 by Becky Bond,

Michael Kieschnick Michael may refer to: People * Michael (given name), a given name * Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael Given name "Michael" * Michael (archangel), ''first'' of God's archangels in the Jewish, Christian and ...

and

James Rucker James Rucker is the co-founder of Color of Change, an online activist organization that aims to strengthen the political voice of African Americans in the United States. The organization was founded by Rucker and Van Jones in the wake of Hurrica ...

,"Secretaries of state give Dem firewall"
Politico article, November 2, 2008. the Secretary of State Project was an American

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

progressive Progressive may refer to: Politics * Progressivism, a political philosophy in support of social reform ** Progressivism in the United States, the political philosophy in the American context * Progressive realism, an American foreign policy par ...

or liberal 527 political action committee focused on electing reform-minded progressive Secretaries of State in battleground states, who typically oversee the election process. They hoped to prevent a repeat of Florida 2000, where the projects backers claimed that a Republican Secretary of State,

Katherine Harris Katherine Harris (born April 5, 1957) is a former American politician. A Republican, Harris served in the Florida Senate from 1994 to 1998, as Secretary of State of Florida from 1999 to 2002, and as a member of the United States House of Repres ...

, took a partisan role in helping to determine the 2000 presidential election results. The Project was funded by

George Soros George Soros ( name written in eastern order), (born György Schwartz, August 12, 1930) is a Hungarian-American businessman and philanthropist. , he had a net worth of US$8.6 billion, Note that this site is updated daily. having donated m ...

and members of the Democracy Alliance including Gail Furman, John R. Hunting;

Paul Rudd Paul Stephen Rudd (born April 6, 1969) is an American actor. He studied theater at the University of Kansas and the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, before making his acting debut in 1991. He received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in ...

; Pat Stryker; Nicholas Hanauer;

Rob Stein Robert Jay Stein (October 26, 1943 – May 2, 2022) was an American political strategist. He launched the Democracy Alliance, which provided seed money to America Votes, Media Matters, and the Center for American Progress. Stein was instrumenta ...

; Drummond Pike;

Robert Bowditch The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...

; Scott Wallace; Susie Tompkins Buell;

Albert Dwoskin Albert may refer to: Companies * Albert (supermarket), a supermarket chain in the Czech Republic * Albert Heijn, a supermarket chain in the Netherlands * Albert Market, a street market in The Gambia * Albert Productions, a record label * Albe ...

; and

Rob McKay Robert Murray McKay is a paleoceanographer who specialises in sedimentology, stratigraphy and palaeoclimatology, specifically gathering geological evidence to study how marine-based portions of the Antarctic ice sheet behave in response to ab ...

. A notable achievement of the Secretary of State Project was the election of Minnesota Secretary of State

Mark Ritchie Mark Ritchie may refer to: *Mark Ritchie (politician), Minnesota Secretary of State, 2007–2015 *Mark Ritchie (pinball designer) Mark Ritchie (born August 20, 1958) is an American pinball designer and video game producer. He is best known for hi ...

in 2006. Ritchie played a pivotal role in adjudicating the 2008 Senate race between

Al Franken Alan Stuart Franken (born May 21, 1951) is an American comedian, politician, media personality, and author who served as a United States senator from Minnesota from 2009 to 2018. He gained fame as a writer and performer on the television comed ...

and

Norm Coleman Norman Bertram Coleman Jr. (born August 17, 1949) is an American politician, attorney, and lobbyist. From 2003 to 2009, he served as a United States Senator for Minnesota. From 1994 to 2002, he was mayor of Saint Paul, Minnesota. First elected ...

, by examining disputed absentee ballots during the

Minnesota Senate recount The 2008 United States Senate election in Minnesota took place on November 4, 2008. After a legal battle lasting over eight months, the Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party (DFL) candidate, Al Franken, defeated Republican incumbent Norm Coleman ...

. In 2010 during the midterm election GOP wave, the PAC was run by

Laura Packard Laura Packard (born May 23, 1976) is an American health care activist and political commentator. She is the founder of Health Care Voices, a non-profit grassroots organization for adults with serious medical conditions. She is executive directo ...

. 2 of 7 candidates were re-elected (California Secretary of State

Debra Bowen Debra Lynn Bowen (born October 27, 1955) is an American attorney and politician who served as the Secretary of State of California from 2007 to 2015. Previously, she was a member of the California State Legislature from 1992 to 2006. In March 200 ...

and Minnesota Secretary of State

). After 2010, the Project had disappeared."Amid voter I.D. battle, Democrats launch PAC for Secretary of State races"

Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large na ...

, Aaron Blake, December 12, 2013. Retrieved 3 September 2014.

References

Political organizations based in the United States United States political action committees Organizations established in 2006 527 organizations Progressive organizations in the United States {{US-election-stub