A foreign charity gave funds to a left-wing nonprofit tied to the Obamas for its get-out-the-vote operation on U.S. college campuses, The Federalist has learned.
“The vast majority of Americans agree that foreign nationals should not be allowed to influence our elections, Yet, time and again we see examples of foreign influence hiding in plain sight,” Americans for Public Trust Executive Director Caitlin Sutherland told The Federalist.
According to its internal database, the Greece-based Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) gifted a financial grant for an undisclosed amount to Civic Nation in 2024.
As noted by InfluenceWatch, Civic Nation is a left-wing organization that promotes “itself as an organ of widespread positive social change.” The group’s board of directors includes many prominent individuals who served in the Obama administration, such as Valerie Jarrett (senior advisor to President Barack Obama) and Tina Tchen (chief of staff to First Lady Michelle Obama).
According to a summary of the grant provided by SNF, the funds given to Civic Nation were designed to support the latter’s “ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge, which aims to foster civic culture and institutionalize democratic engagement activities, like voting, at colleges and universities.”
As The Federalist previously reported, ALL IN encompasses more than 1,000 participating universities and operates across 50 states and the District of Columbia. While marketed as a “nonpartisan” enterprise, the venture has produced leftist talking points about commonsense election safeguards like voter ID requirements and is stacked with Democrat partisans.
Sutherland said that SNF’s donation to Civic Nation represents “another example of unacceptable foreign influence being exerted on our political processes through innocuous-sounding left-wing nonprofit organizations.” She further opined that the “funding sources for Civic Nation’s GOTV operation clearly need further scrutiny and accountability.”
Neither Civic Nation nor SNF responded to The Federalist’s request for comment on the total of the 2024 grant and whether the latter has given the former any additional grants in years prior. Nor did either respond when pressed on if they believe it is appropriate to use such foreign funds for matters related to U.S. elections.
Meanwhile, SNF has its own track record of backing left-wing-aligned causes.
Founded by now-deceased Greek shipping mogul Stavros Spyros Niarchos, the international philanthropic organization has given several grants to Harlem Stage, a New York-based theater program and “an SNF partner since 2010.” In October 2022, SNF gave the group a grant to “support[] artists of color in creating innovative and socially significant works of art.”
Harlem Stage regurgitates talking points often espoused by race-obsessed leftists.
The program’s “About” page, for example, states, “Our collective work continues to amplify the voices of the millions who have taken to the streets demanding justice not just this time, but also historically to examine and denounce racism, its terrible legacy, and its recurring deleterious impact.” It further acknowledges its awareness of climate alarmism, saying, “[W]e see climate change as one of the most pressing issues of our time — an issue that disproportionately impacts Black and Brown communities across the globe.”
According to InfluenceWatch, SNF also helped subsidize the launch of the SNF Agora Institute at Johns Hopkins University to the tune of $150 million in 2017. This “left-of-center research institute,” the watchdog noted, “advocates for left-of-center public policy under the guise of improving democratic processes.”
“Its research fellows claim that policy that restricts speech to prevent so-called ‘misinformation,’ environmentalist policies, policies that increase funding health care programs for immigrants, and funding for education programs are essential for improving democratic processes,” the InfluenceWatch report reads.
Civic Nation’s acceptance of SNF funds were first disclosed in a supplement to a complaint filed with the Department of Education by Republican Desi Anderson, who unsuccessfully ran for an Illinois state House seat in the 2024 election. In her original March filing, Anderson requested the agency investigate several Midwestern colleges for allegedly sharing protected student data with third parties working to boost left-wing get-out-the-vote efforts on university campuses.
As The Federalist previously reported, the schools named in Anderson’s complaint are ALL IN members.
“It is the belief of the Complainant that the SNF foreign funding of Civic Nation’s ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge program constitutes foreign meddling in United States elections,” Anderson’s May 7 supplement reads. “SNF’s foreign funding of Civic Nation’s ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge program is another reason the Secretary of Education and Office of Chief Privacy Officer should demand [Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act] FERPA compliance from the 800-plus schools participating in Civic Nation’s Civic Nation’s ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge program.”
When pressed on whether it is investigating the allegations made in Anderson’s complaint, an Education Department representative told The Federalist the agency “cannot confirm” the status of complaints it receives.
For more election news and updates, visit electionbriefing.com.
Shawn Fleetwood is a staff writer for The Federalist and a graduate of the University of Mary Washington. He previously served as a state content writer for Convention of States Action and his work has been featured in numerous outlets, including RealClearPolitics, RealClearHealth, and Conservative Review. Follow him on Twitter @ShawnFleetwood
