Democracy Innovation Prize

The SMPA Democracy Innovation track in the 2027 New Venture Competition, hosted by the Office of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, supports ventures that seek to meaningfully and measurably strengthen democracy and democratic institutions by increasing public confidence in US local, state, and national elections. 

We are looking for deployable solutions that increase voters’ trust that their votes will be counted and that the candidate who receives the most votes wins.

Examples Include:

• A national campaign to get community members to volunteer in polling places and explain the process to their neighbors.
• A way for AI to help make voter registration, voting process, tallying and results more transparent in real time.
• A national canvassing campaign to explain local election processes, person-to-person.
• A tool-kit for local leaders, pastors, teachers, and others explaining local election rules to spread ownership of the vote.

For more information regarding next steps of the New Venture Competition, please check below.