Browse sourced findings, connection research, and open questions. Each entry retains the status and qualifications recorded with the research. A connection research note is not automatically a verified network-map relationship.
Research finding · 2026-09-15
Recorded status: Verified WEF network/support relationship and Boise voter-information project announcement. Specific WEF funding, partisan activity or electoral/legislative causation is NOT established.
A narrow but direct World Economic Forum institutional route into Idaho civic/election-related activity is documented through the Global Shapers Community. WEF's own 2016 Global Shapers annual report lists a Boise Hub. A November 30, 2015 Idaho Statesman item introducing Global Shapers Boise says it was a branch of the World Economic Forum Global Shapers Community and identified an upcoming project to inform Boise young adults and first-time voters about t…
Read note and sources →Connection research · 2026-09-15
Recorded status: Current FEC summary and FEC-bulk aggregation verified; one $125K WFF row is primary reproduced and WFF connected-organization status is primary verified. Remaining large WFF/Toolbox receipt rows still require raw-row reproduction before transaction-level finality.
Current FEC data materially increases the scale of the Western Futures→Way Back→Idaho route beyond earlier snapshots. The FEC committee overview reports Way Back PAC total receipts of $5,185,803.26 for Jan. 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026. A current FEC-bulk aggregation of itemized large receipts groups Western Futures Fund under two filer/entity classifications: $1,075,000 across two receipts plus a separately classified $125,000 receipt, for approximately …
Read note and sources →Connection research · 2026-09-15
Recorded status: Verified from Idaho Supreme Court opinion; direct operational staffing bridge. Legal control/common finances not established.
The Idaho Supreme Court’s 2023 decision in Idahoans for Open Primaries v. Labrador establishes a direct operational staffing bridge between Reclaim Idaho and the Open Primaries initiative. The Court states that Ashley Prince had been a Reclaim Idaho employee since 2021 working as a campaign manager, that Reclaim was actively pursuing the initiative, and that Prince served as campaign manager for the Idahoans for Open Primaries initiative campaign while con…
Read note and sources →Connection research · 2026-09-15
Recorded status: Verified entity/personnel links. Corporate control, inter-entity transfers, shared-service agreements and donor routing remain unresolved.
The Reclaim Idaho network has multiple legal/committee layers. Reclaim Idaho appears in Idaho campaign-finance records as a political committee; a 2019 filing lists Deborah Silver as political treasurer. Reclaim Idaho Fund Inc. (EIN 86-3680412) is a 501(c)(4) formed in 2021; IRS-derived records list Luke Mayville, Yvonne Sandmire, and Cameron Crow as directors in earlier filings, with Mayville receiving $35,897 compensation in FY2023. A separate 501(c)(3),…
Read note and sources →Connection research · 2026-09-15
Recorded status: Verified professional/network affiliations and self-reported CV claims. No control/funding inference from BISC or Democratic Party recognition.
Luke Mayville's own CV lists political-organizing expertise in campaign strategy, leadership recruitment, speechwriting/communications, and fundraising. It also lists a 2019 Idaho Democratic Party 'Activist of the Year' award shared with Reclaim co-founders Emily and Garrett Strizich; this is evidence of party recognition, not proof that Reclaim is a Democratic Party organization. The Ballot Initiative Strategy Center (BISC) has profiled Mayville as a camp…
Read note and sources →Research finding · 2026-09-15
Recorded status: PRIMARY FCC VERIFIED local governing/contact and media-buy vendor. Funding-source direction, shared-vendor coordination and upstream earmarking are NOT established.
Primary 2026 FCC political-file records identify the Idaho-side steering and media-buying structure for Idaho First. An FCC issue-ad disclosure for Idaho First lists PO Box 334, Boise, Idaho 83701; identifies Richard Johnson as the organization contact; gives richard@idaho-first.com; and lists Richard Johnson as the sole named member of the chief executive officers/executive committee/board/other governing group field. The same record identifies Targeted P…
Read note and sources →Connection research · 2026-09-15
Recorded status: Verified c3 governance link from IRS-derived filing. Exact c3/c4 legal relationship and funding flows remain unresolved.
IRS-derived FY2025 Form 990-EZ data for Idaho Solutions Foundation Inc., EIN 39-5049634, Kimberly, Idaho, identifies Linda Hartgen as president, Chenele Dixon as director, Stephanie Snarr as secretary, and Cindy Wilson as vice president, all with $0 reported compensation. The filing reports $1,000 revenue, all contributions/grants, and $1,000 ending net assets. The organization is listed as a 501(c)(3), with IRS ruling year January 2026. Separately, public…
Read note and sources →Research finding · 2026-09-15
Recorded status: Unresolved identity; secondary normalization is insufficient. Keep separate until unique primary identifier is found.
Primary FCC material for Idaho Values First identifies 'Judy Ellis' among its governing persons. Defend and Protect Idaho's official records/site identify 'Judith Ellis' as treasurer. Secondary 2026 reporting normalizes the Idaho Values First name to 'Judith Ellis,' which increases the plausibility of an identity match, but no primary record reviewed supplies a matching full legal name, address or other unique identifier connecting the two. Keep them as se…
Read note and sources →Connection research · 2026-09-15
Recorded status: Verified national grant purposes and Open Primaries partnership/support relationship; Idaho earmarking or downstream transfer not established.
A second national infrastructure route into the Idaho Open Primaries effort is documented through Open Primaries / Open Primaries Education Fund. Unite America Institute’s primary 2023 Form 990 Schedule I shows a $450,000 grant to Open Primaries Education Fund for a grassroots program for activists supportive of primary reform, media and research, and long-term litigation. IRS-derived records show Unite America Institute ultimately gave Open Primaries Educ…
Read note and sources →Research finding · 2026-09-15
Recorded status: Verified from IRS-derived FY2024 filing data. Asset accumulation established; use/transfer/restriction of those assets remains unresolved.
IRS-derived FY2024 Form 990 data for Reclaim Idaho Fund Inc. (EIN 86-3680412) reports $312,808 total revenue, including $312,428 in contributions, against $40,550 of expenses, producing $272,258 in net income and $351,972 in year-end net assets with no reported liabilities. FY2023 net assets were $79,714, so the 2024 increase in net assets matches the reported $272,258 net income. This shows the 501(c)(4) entered 2025 with substantial accumulated assets re…
Read note and sources →Connection research · 2026-09-15
Recorded status: PRIMARY $550K grant plus recipient Idaho electoral/lobbying mission verified. Idaho earmarking and transaction-level pass-through to Idaho PAC/candidate activity NOT established.
Sixteen Thirty Fund’s primary FY2022 Schedule I reports a $550,000 grant to Planned Parenthood Alliance Advocates (PPAA), EIN 94-3168114, for civil rights, social action and advocacy. PPAA is the multi-state 501(c)(4) political/advocacy organization serving Alaska, Hawaii, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky and Washington. Its own filings describe program activities that include voter engagement and education, candidate endorsements/electoral activity through indepe…
Read note and sources →Connection research · 2026-09-15
Recorded status: D&P Judith Ellis role and TBI Cheryl Miller role verified from official organization sites. IVF director roles are secondary reporting said to rely on Idaho SOS records; exact primary filing/identity match still unresolved.
Defend and Protect Idaho's current official website identifies Judith Ellis as its treasurer. Take Back Idaho's current official website identifies Cheryl Miller as a board member. Separately, April 2026 Observer/Honor Idaho reporting states that Idaho Secretary of State nonprofit corporation records for Idaho Values First list Judith Ellis, Cheryl Miller and Rolando Ruano as current directors. If those reported corporate records refer to the same individu…
Read note and sources →Research finding · 2026-09-15
Recorded status: Revenue and grant amounts verified from filing-derived records; concentration established, but legal control and downstream earmarking are not established.
Western Futures Fund’s dependence on a small number of large institutional grants is quantitatively significant. WFF’s FY2022 filing reports total revenue of $3,427,856. Sixteen Thirty Fund’s reported 2022 grant to WFF was $2,225,000, equal to approximately 64.9% of WFF’s total reported revenue for that year. In FY2024, WFF reported $8,735,000 total revenue; grants received included $2,750,000 from Sixteen Thirty Fund and $1,780,000 from New Venture Fund. …
Read note and sources →Connection research · 2026-09-15
Recorded status: Verified organization-to-organization grant relationships from IRS-derived Schedule I records. Coordination and earmarking not established.
IRS-derived grant records show Western Futures Fund (WFF) funded several Idaho or Idaho-linked advocacy/electoral nodes across 2022–2024. WFF gave Votes Idaho Corporation $562,000 across three grants in 2022–2024; Conservation Voters for Idaho $145,000 in 2023; Idahoans United for Women and Families $60,000 in 2024; and Way Back PAC $200,000 across 2022–2024, including $100,000 in 2024. WFF's FY2024 filing reports receiving $2.75 million from Sixteen Thirt…
Read note and sources →Connection research · 2026-09-15
Recorded status: IRS-derived funding and program-description facts verified; no identity link to America Votes’ Idaho state table or common control is established.
Votes Idaho Company is not described in its latest filing merely as a single-issue advocacy organization. Filing-derived program descriptions say it organized workshops, seminars and educational events; facilitated coordination among various issue-advocacy groups to amplify collective impact; provided a platform for organizations to share resources, best practices and strategic insights; and organized regular meetings, conferences and webinars to foster co…
Read note and sources →Connection research · 2026-09-15
Recorded status: IRS-derived organizational grants verified; no same-dollar pass-through from America Votes to Sixteen Thirty or Western Futures is established.
Tioga Fund creates another crossline among major democracy/election-adjacent funding nodes. IRS-derived grant records show America Votes gave Tioga Fund approximately $1.1 million in 2021. Tioga’s outgoing grant records show it gave Sixteen Thirty Fund $100,000 in 2020, $55,000 in 2021 and $292,000 in 2022, approximately $447,000 total; it also gave Western Futures Fund $100,000 in 2022, with filing-derived purpose data describing that WFF grant as “Democr…
Read note and sources →Research finding · 2026-09-15
Recorded status: PRIMARY IRS VERIFIED. Formal board and outsourced day-to-day management are both documented; individual decision authority remains unresolved.
Western Futures Fund's FY2024 public filing reports three independent voting board members: Michael Hennesy (president), Jeremy Krones (treasurer), and Christopher Hirsch (secretary), each with $0 reportable compensation. The filing reports no salary/wage expense. Separately, Schedule O states Blue Moon Strategies is responsible for day-to-day operations as management consultant. Schedule C reports $2.67M paid from WFF funds to four PACs in 2024: Your Comm…
Read note and sources →Connection research · 2026-09-15
Recorded status: PRIMARY VERIFIED grant purpose; contemporaneous Idaho Open Primaries work verified separately. Idaho earmarking/pass-through remains unproved.
Unite America Institute’s own 2023 Form 990 Schedule I provides the purpose of its $25,000 grant to Mormon Women for Ethical Government Foundation (EIN 82-2899244): “TO CREATE, PRODUCE, AND DISSEMINATE EDUCATIONAL CONTENT ON THE PROBLEMS WITH THE CURRENT ELECTION SYSTEM AND POTENTIAL SOLUTIONS.” This is primary grant-purpose evidence, not merely a grant-database inference. The grant occurred in the same year MWEG’s Idaho chapter formally joined the Idahoan…
Read note and sources →Connection research · 2026-09-15
Recorded status: Verified multi-hop organizational funding relationships. Specific-dollar tracing/earmarking is not established.
A multi-hop organizational funding path is documented across filings. Western Futures Fund granted Western State(s) Strategies $13,500 in 2022 and $10,000 in 2024 (aggregate about $23,500; grant databases round to about $24,000). Western States Strategies, EIN 93-1316666, is a Portland 501(c)(4) affiliated with Western States Center and is also known as Western State Strategies. The Democracy Program Political Fund, a 527 whose stated purpose is 'to influe…
Read note and sources →Connection research · 2026-09-15
Recorded status: Verified operational/public-advocacy role from contemporaneous reporting. Campaign-wide strategic control and any Idaho Solutions organizational role in Prop 1 remain unproved.
Cindy Wilson’s connection to Idahoans for Open Primaries is stronger than coalition proximity alone. Idaho Capital Sun reporting from October 2023 identifies Wilson, acting with Mormon Women for Ethical Government, as personally gathering signatures for the Open Primaries initiative in Meridian and quotes her explaining why she was supporting the initiative through MWEG. Associated Press imagery/reporting from April 2024 likewise identifies Wilson with MWE…
Read note and sources →Connection research · 2026-09-15
Recorded status: Verified NEA→IEA $500K ballot-initiative funding and verified IEA endorsement of Reclaim's Quality Education Act; direct earmarking of those funds to Reclaim/QEA not proven.
The National Education Association's FY2022 federal LM-2 report lists four payments to the Idaho Education Association totaling exactly $500,000, each described as 'Ballot Init support grant': $101,000 on Jan. 10, $250,000 on Mar. 22, $101,000 on Apr. 25, and $48,000 on Aug. 31, 2022. During the same period, IEA publicly and unanimously endorsed Reclaim Idaho's Quality Education Act, which was the major statewide citizen education initiative Reclaim was qu…
Read note and sources →Connection research · 2026-09-15
Recorded status: Strong direct-Idaho secondary evidence plus verified national 501(c)(3) grant route; legal entities and earmarking kept separate.
The Veterans branch now has two distinct Unite America funding routes that must be kept legally separate. First, contemporaneous 2024 Idaho campaign-finance reporting based on Idaho Secretary of State data states that Veterans for Idaho Voters received more than $109,000 in donations, including a $100,000 contribution directly from Unite America PAC; the group ran Facebook ads supporting Proposition 1. Second, Unite America Institute’s 2023 Form 990 Schedu…
Read note and sources →Connection research · 2026-09-15
Recorded status: PRIMARY FEC VERIFIED direct Way Back→Colin Nash campaign contribution; personnel/electoral crossline established. No Votes Idaho grant pass-through or coordination is established.
Way Back PAC, whose January 2026 FEC Statement of Organization identifies Western Futures Fund as its Connected Organization, made a $1,000 contribution on September 30, 2025 to Colin Nash For Boise for Nash’s Boise City Council campaign. The primary FEC Schedule B row identifies the recipient as Colin Nash For Boise, gives a Boise address, labels the payment a contribution to a non-federal committee, and includes the memo ID - Colin Nash (Boise City Counc…
Read note and sources →Connection research · 2026-09-15
Recorded status: PRIMARY leadership/initiative role plus current campaign-finance spending verified. Western Futures $60K general-purpose grant is documented, but no specific WFF dollar is traced to a vendor or initiative expense.
The Western Futures→Idahoans United branch now has an identifiable Idaho strategist and a detailed expenditure profile. Western Futures Fund’s FY2024 grant records report a $60,000 general-purpose grant to Idahoans United for Women and Families. In a sworn January 2025 declaration to the Idaho Supreme Court, Melanie Folwell stated that she is Idahoans United’s executive director and member, has held the leadership position since 2024, and in that role orga…
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