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Citizens for Self-Governance
| Citizens for Self-Governance | |
 | |
| Basic facts | |
| Location: | Austin, Texas |
| Type: | 501(c)(3) |
| Top official: | Mark Meckler |
| Website: | Official website |
| Connections | |
| Tim Dunn, Jim DeMint, Eric O'Keefe | |
Citizens for Self-Governance is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in Austin, Texas. The organization sponsors the Convention of States Project, which calls for a convention to propose amendments to the United States Constitution in order to reduce the size and scope of the federal government.[1]
Background
As of August 2025, the Citizens for Self-Governance website said its mission is "recruiting educating, training, equipping and motivating a nationwide network of self-governing citizen activists, committed to bringing government back to the people."[2]
Citizens for Self-Governance was founded in 2012 by Mark Meckler.[3]
Leadership
As of August 2025, Mark Meckler was the president of Citizens for Self-Governance.[4] Eric O'Keefe was the chairman of the group's board.[4]
Work and activities
Convention of States Project
In 2013, Citizens for Self-Governance founded the Convention of States Project, which seeks to raise support for calling a convention under Article V of the United States Constitution to propose constitutional amendments to “limit the power and jurisdiction of the federal government, impose fiscal restraints, and place term limits on federal officials."[5] Under Article V, two-thirds of states, or 34 states, must call for a convention.[5]
"We believe Washington, D.C., is broken and will not fix itself," the Convention of States Foundation website said as of August 2025. "The federal government is spending this country into the ground, seizing power from the states and taking liberty from the people."[6]
The group lobbies in state legislatures for passage of a resolution calling for a convention, organizes volunteer groups and hosts events.[7] As of August 2025, Rick Santorum, Tom Coburn, and Jim DeMint were senior advisors to the project.[5]
As of August 2025, 19 states had passed a resolution calling for an Article V convention.[8]
Notable endorsements
This section displays endorsements this organization made in elections within Ballotpedia's coverage scope. Know of one we missed? Click here to let us know.
Affiliations
As of September 2025, Citizens for Self-Governance was affiliated with CSG Action, 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization. The organization was originally known as the Alliance for Self-Governance.[9]
Finances
The following is a breakdown of Citizens for Self-Governance's revenues and expenses for the 2019 to 2022 fiscal years, according to documents submitted to the Internal Revenue Service.
See also
External links
- Citizens for Self-Governance
- Citizens for Self-Governance on Facebook
- Citizens for Self-Governance on Twitter
Footnotes
- ↑ Convention of States, "Who is Citizens for Self-Governance and How Does It Relate to the COS Project?" accessed August 25, 2025
- ↑ Citizens for Self-Governance", "Who Decides," accessed August 25, 2025
- ↑ American Legislative Exchange Council, "Mark Meckler," accessed August 25, 2025
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Citizens for Self-Governance, "Leadership," accessed August 25, 2025
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Convention of States Project, "Home," accessed August 25, 2025
- ↑ Convention of States Foundation, "Who We Are," accessed August 25, 2025
- ↑ Convention of States Project, "Take Action," accessed August 25, 2025
- ↑ Convention of States Project, "Progress Map: States that have passed the Convention of States Article V application," accessed August 25, 2025
- ↑ ProPublica, "Csg Action," accessed September 22, 2025
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Internal Revenue Service, "Citizens for Self-Governance 2022 990 Form," accessed August 25, 2025
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Internal Revenue Service, "Citizens for Self-Governance 2020 990 Form," accessed August 25, 2025
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