About Rural Democracy Initiative
Rural Democracy Initiative supports and connects rural leaders working to transform our lives and communities
Fueling Rural Progress
Rural Democracy Initiative is a unique funding collaborative building power toward a thriving democracy and shared prosperity across rural areas, small cities and Native communities. We bring together resources from leading philanthropic organizations and individual donors to implement a coordinated, long-term strategy.
We invest in civic infrastructure in small cities and towns to shape public opinion, elections, and redistricting processes. We also fight for policies that make a difference for rural people, and support groups that build a bigger tent in rural communities, bringing neighbors, small businesses, and local leaders together across ideological and racial divides to solve real problems and defend democratic participation. We are building sustainable organizations that support rural people working to transform rural America — and therefore our national politics — for decades to come.
Rural is Ready
Across the country, people in rural communities are passionate about the places where we live and are deeply connected to the people, lands, and traditions that make each of our communities unique. But many of our communities have limited access to quality affordable housing, healthcare, education, essential services, and even the ballot. These challenges have snowballed due to lack of government and philanthropic investment. Rural communities are ready for change, and we are ready to provide working-class folks with the tools and support they need to enact that change for their families.
Seeing Rural
Rural voters hold tremendous sway over national outcomes: 25% of the population control 60% of the Senate. At the same time, rural America’s demographics and cultural histories are rapidly evolving; 24% of rural residents are people of color, and many are immigrants. Additionally, 70% of rural Americans are working-class, and recent election results highlight the need for a worker-centered strategy nationwide.
RDI amplifies new rural voices, ideas, and energy. We promote racial justice and seek partnerships with groups working in rural communities of color, with young people, and groups leading bold race-forward social and economic justice work in majority-white communities. The changing cultural fabric of rural communities is reflected through the many partnerships and coalitions we help foster.
Grantees Spotlight
Rural Ohio Turns Out for Democracy
Anti-democratic policies in Ohio make it hard for voters to shape important decisions that impact their lives. The current legislative majority’s heavily gerrymandered state house maps were rejected five times by the Ohio Supreme Court. Ohio also purges the most voters – especially voters of color and young voters – of any state except Georgia. To overcome these barriers, Rural Democracy has invested deeply in rural, small-city, and exurban efforts. Our grantees are a vital part of the winning coalition fighting for fair representation and core freedoms like the right to reproductive care.
Tool
Rural Map and Dashboard
Our Rural Map and Dashboard helps answer the common question: “How do we define rural?” Informed by nuanced feedback from our grantee network, the Dashboard provides rural classifications for each of the country’s census tracts. You can sort by state, county, congressional, and legislative districts. The Dashboard also provides detailed insight into voting trends and demographics.
Racial Justice is Essential to our Mission
Rural Democracy Initiative practices racial justice in action throughout our work.
By the numbers
In 2025, our donors helped us grant millions to groups in areas where rural action will define policy and civic engagement outcomes. Through grants and strategic investments, Rural Democracy provides our grantees with the tools they need to support inspiring leaders, lift local voices, mobilize new voters, and advocate for better government.
$10.2M
in grants
168
organizations across 23 states
49%
of funding for Black, Indigenous, and people of color led and/or serving groups
$1.1M
in timely, aligned investments
Endorsements
Praise for Rural Democracy
Blue Tent, a top donor publication, strongly recommends donations to Rural Democracy, because of our proven track record engaging rural voters in battleground states. Blue Tent’s philanthropic role includes thoroughly vetting influential organizations to reveal the most effective ways to build power. As one of Blue Tent’s priority picks for support, Rural Democracy Initiative demonstrates the powerful impact of our work across — and beyond — rural America.
The Latest
Rural Democracy in the News
Rural Democracy Co-Authors Op-Ed for America’s 250th
A 250th anniversary op-ed shows how rural organizers are reclaiming power and keeping “We the People” alive.
Building Bridges and Building Power
Inside Philanthropy highlights Rural Democracy’s work.
Rural Democacy in The New Yorker
Committed and trained leaders fuel highly effective grassroots efforts
Changes to rural postal service will delay mail and disenfranchise voters
Rural Democracy provided analysis to media outlets.
Discover More About the Rural Democracy
Learn more about who we are and how to support our work.
Our History
Rural Democracy Initiative launched in 2018 with a mission to build power for progress in rural America. That first year, we published All the People, All the Places to better understand the challenges and possibilities for rural communities, and to rally our funding partners to support effective rural civic engagement.
This landscape analysis also informed our strategy, supporting local groups and leaders to drive year-round community engagement. We provided critical funding to many emerging groups so they could get established and scale up. For example, in 2020 we were seed funders of New Rural Project which organized pop-up health clinics and civic engagement workshops to improve health outcomes and support community leaders to run for office. We helped New Rural Project improve their communities, and we also learned important lessons about the support rural organizers need to achieve their goals.
By the end of 2020, we grew to support almost 100 grantees. We saw impressive wins across our network, including the crucial role of rural voters in Georgia’s Black Belt solidifying pro-democracy Senate victories. In response to grantee needs we designed new tools and shared resources; we hosted the first Rural Policy Action Summit in 2021 and created the Rural Map and Dashboard in 2022.
In 2023 and 2024, we ramped up our grantmaking and added significant capacity building for our grantees, including support for data and research, fundraising, and safety and security. Years of building connections among rural groups and strengthening rural civic infrastructure paid off. In Wisconsin, our grantees’ multi-year fight for fair maps led to rural wins across the state. For Montanans, rural organizing made it possible to break the state’s anti-democratic supermajority. And our Alaska grantees achieved a bipartisan governing majority in both chambers.
Today, we face urgent new challenges. But we have demonstrated through years of success that rural and small-town Americans are an essential part of the coalition that will swing the pendulum back toward progress. Through our dynamic approach of bridge building, power building, and investment in thriving communities, we provide a bulwark against the urgent threats, and an opportunity to contest for the heart and soul of America.
The Rural Democracy Umbrella
Rural Democracy Initiative includes the civic engagement and multi-issue advocacy work of the 501(c)(3) Heartland Fund and 501(c)(4) Rural Victory Fund. It is the first funding collaborative building power toward a thriving democracy and shared prosperity across diverse communities in rural areas and small cities. To learn more about the Heartland Fund’s Rural Climate Partnership and Resource Rural programs, visit the Heartland Fund.
No funds from the Heartland Fund have been used to conduct any political activity or intervene in any election. The grantee work described on this website may describe activities that were not directly funded by Heartland Fund or Rural Victory Fund, but are provided to provide a comprehensive overview of the impact of our grantees’ work.
Impact Report
Rural Democracy is delivering results: securing critical funding for rural schools, recruiting leaders for immigrant justice, and winning elections.
In our 2025 Impact Report, we share inspiring stories, highlight grantees creating thriving places, and offer four themes that guide our work in driving progress across rural America.
Funding Collaborative
Funding collaboratives bring together multiple funding partners to learn together and support a common mission with greater grantmaking flexibility and focused expertise. The Rural Democracy Initiative utilizes this funding collaborative structure to combine resources in support of progress across rural America. By pooling funds through one coordinated structure, our funding partners can reach trusted rural grassroots groups, while also drawing on Heartland Fund’s wraparound support — capacity building, research, communications, and convening—that amplifies the impact of every dollar. Funding collaboratives offer a new way of giving that augments the individual capacity of philanthropic organizations and donors.