One group works to sign up voters, unless they like NASCAR, Jeeps, Duck Dynasty, PGA Tour
One “non-partisan” voter-registration scheme has given specific instructions that its ads not be directed to those individuals who like NASCAR. the Indy 500, Jeeps, Duck Dynasty, the PGA Tour and other “interests and hobbies typically associated with Republican men.”
Their Facebook ads, the company insists, should be directed to “audiences interested in a wide variety of topics typically associated with liberal audiences, including ‘African-American Literature,’ ‘Jordan Peele,’ ‘Taylor Swift,’ ‘Patagonia,’ and ‘hot yoga.'”
It is a report in the Free Beacon that explains that the Voter Participation Center is anxious to help those in swing states who want to cast ballots in the November election, “unless” you have interests in those activities “associated with Republican men.”
“In that case, the Voter Participation Center does not want to share information that might help you make it to the polls in November,” the report explained.
The center is a self-described “non-partisan” organization that claims to have helped millions register to vote.
Its “non-partisan” description is to meet the IRS requirements that charities engage in voter registration efforts in a “neutral” fashion.
“On the surface, the Voter Participation Center’s Facebook ads appear to meet that non-partisan standard,” the report said.
However, the report shows, “Behind the scenes, Facebook ad library data indicate the Voter Participation Center’s ad campaign is deployed with partisan intent. The group has instructed Facebook to exclude from the reach of its ads anyone with expressed interests in 26 categories typically associated with Republican men, including the ‘PGA Tour,’ ‘Indianapolis 500,’ ‘Daytona 500,’ ‘Tom Clancy,’ ‘Modified Jeeps,’ ‘Duck Dynasty,’ and others.”
The impact could be considered large, as it bought more than 8,200 Facebook ads over just 90 days, at a cost of some $760,000, in Nevada, Arizona, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, and Georgia, the report confirmed the Facebook ad library reveals.
No comment from the center to questions from the Free Beacon.
But a 2013 study showed NASCAR and golf are “the two most Republican-leaning sports leagues in the country.”
According to the publication, “Capital Research president Scott Walter said it was little surprise that the Voter Participation Center is microtargeting its voter registration ads to prevent Republican audiences from seeing the message, saying the group has a history of exploiting IRS nonprofit rules to give Democrats an electoral edge.”
After all, the Free Beacon said, Tom Lopach runs it, after stints with the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and in Democrat Sen. Jon Tester’s office.
Further, Walter noted, the center from 2020 to 2022 paid $17.8 million for services from Mission Control, a firm that brags of being “the most successful direct mail firm working in Democratic politics today.”
The center also heavily supports Pivot Group, “another Democratic microtargeting firm.”
Walter charges the center has been laughing at the requirements for neutrality for years, “Will they ever be held accountable?”
The organization Influence Watch notes that the center gets money from a long list of leftist organizations, including Hopewell Fund and Tides Foundation.
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