iVoterGuide

iVoterGuide
Basic facts
Location:	Tupelo, Mississippi
Type:	501(c)(4)
Top official:	Debbie Wuthnow, President
Founder(s):	Richard Ford, Jim Sneeringer
Website:	Official website
Connections
American Family Association Action

iVoterGuide is a 501(c)(4) organization based in Tupelo, Mississippi, that researches candidates and their stances, provides candidate surveys and ratings, and develops online voter guides. The organization describes itself as "the nation's largest candidate research organization focused exclusively on information and mobilizing voters with biblical values." iVoterGuide is a division of the American Family Association (AFA) Action.

Background

iVoterGuide was created in 2008 by Richard Ford, founder of the Heritage Alliance, and Jim Sneeringer, a retired computer programmer, initially covering Texas' five most populous counties during that election cycle. The organization's candidate research preceded its creation, with Ford having compiled a hard-copy Texas voter guide in 2006 that he distributed to churches across the state. iVoterGuide expanded its coverage in 2010 to include all federal races and several state legislative chambers. In 2012, iVoterGuide first partnered with AFA Action to distribute their voter guides. In 2021, AFA Action acquired iVoterGuide.

As of 2024, iVoterGuide's coverage included all federal races, statewide races in 37 states, and state legislative races in 32 states. Its coverage also included state supreme court races in 18 states as well as scattered coverage of statewide ballot measures and county, local, and school board elections.

Mission

iVoterGuide describes its mission as "to equip and empower Christians to vote wisely and be good stewards." On its website, the organization further says:

“

Because of our faith in God and love for Country, we are dedicated to preserving the Judeo-Christian values of our founding fathers. We seek to provide accurate information, to treat people fairly and with respect, and to do everything to the best of our ability for the glory of God.

”

Core values

On its website, iVoterGuide listed the following five core values as of 2024:

“

Objective Truth: We seek to glorify God by applying the unchanging, absolute truth and authority of His Word to all spheres of life, including family, church, enterprise, and civil government. Marriage and Family: We believe that biblical marriage and responsible parenting leads to human and societal flourishing. Sanctity of Life: We uphold the truth that God creates all human beings in His image and endows them with the right to life, liberty, and personal responsibility to fulfill His calling upon their lives. Stewardship: We believe that God is sovereign over everything in the heavens and on earth, including this ministry. As God’s stewards, we strive for excellence and integrity in all we do, with the goal to hear 'Well done, good and faithful servant.' Religious Liberty: We believe that all men and women, whether in private or public, should be free to exercise their faith without hindrance from the government.

”

Work

Voter guide

iVoterGuide compiles candidate information into a searchable voter guide. Click here to learn more. As of 2024, this research included the following information:

Biography

iVoterGuide allows candidates to submit biographical information, including their political party, incumbency information, and links to websites and social media. Candidates can also provide educational and professional information along with any other affiliations.

Scorecards and endorsements

For candidates who have previously held office, iVoterGuide compiles and displays legislative scorecard information. Additionally, iVoterGuide researches candidate endorsements and also allows candidates to report their own endorsements. In conducting its research, iVoterGuide classifies each endorser as conservative, liberal, or other, which it describes as "endorsers who are not able to be classified either way."

Campaign finance

iVoterGuide researches campaign finance materials and displays selected findings. The organization divides these findings into two categories, displaying individuals and organizations who have donated to the candidate as well as individuals or organizations the candidate has donated to. iVoterGuide defines donors or recipients as either conservative or liberal and displays its findings alongside those labels. These findings are not limited to the current election cycle.

Candidate questionnaires

iVoterGuide allows candidates to fill out questionnaires that contain "35 carefully crafted in-depth questions on key areas of concern to Judeo-Christian voters to get to the heart of candidates' stances on important issues."

Candidate ratings

iVoterGuide rates candidates based on a combination of the above information. This section features descriptions of the labels and ratings based on the verbiage and methodology iVoterGuide uses. A full explanation of the site's ratings can be found here.

Labels

Conservative

Described as:

“

In general, we define a conservative candidate as someone who, to varying degrees, generally holds these key principles: Limited government—able to restrain evil, yet itself restrained within proper limits of authority Individual liberty—particularly, the freedom to seek God and the opportunity to use our faculties for His glory Free enterprise—utilizing our abilities to provide for ourselves and our families, and bless our community Eternal truths—such as the right to life, the essentialness of the biblical family structure, and the importance of national boundaries Peace through strength—in the words of George Washington, “. . . if we desire to secure peace… it must be known that we are at all times ready for war.”

”

Liberal

Described as:

“

We define a liberal candidate, on the other hand, as someone who generally holds principles such as: More government control—in an effort to solve all or most societal ills Individual license instead of liberty —rejecting self-restraint that leads to freedom Greater regulation of enterprise—to produce equal outcomes, based on the belief that economic success always comes at another’s expense Rejection of eternal truths—instead pursuing human ideas of “progress” Peace through diplomacy alone—often not recognizing that the enemies of the United States don’t desire peace, but the annihilation of America

”

Ratings

Verified conservative/liberal

Described as:

“

The strongest evaluations within the spectrum are “Verified Conservative” or “Verified Liberal.” The term “verified” reflects the fact that only candidates who have a voting record or have taken public action demonstrating a commitment to conservative or liberal principles, despite significant pressure, are eligible to receive this evaluation.

”

Conservative/liberal

Described as:

“

The next strongest, “Conservative” and “Liberal,” reflect candidates who appear to have solid conservative or liberal values based on information such as donations, endorsements, and public statements. Without having a strong voting record, however, the candidate is unproven as “Verified Conservative or Liberal.”

”

iVoterGuide includes conditional ratings at this stage, which it describes as follows:

“

“Conservative Conditional” and “Liberal Conditional” applies to candidates who appear to hold beliefs equivalent to a Conservative or Liberal evaluation. However, our researchers were only able to find minimal information on these candidates. Therefore, our confidence that they are conservative or liberal is conditional.

”

Leans conservative/liberal

Described as:

“

“Leans Conservative” or “Leans Liberal” evaluations are for candidates with a mix of liberal and conservative beliefs. All issues considered, the candidate leans toward one side of the political spectrum and therefore did not receive a moderate evaluation. However, he or she possesses enough beliefs from the other side to prevent a solid liberal or conservative evaluation.

”

Moderate

Described as:

“

A “Moderate” candidate may be liberal on some issues and conservative on other issues. Overall, the candidate does not have any consistent leaning as a conservative or liberal.

”

Far-right/left

iVoterGuide includes additional ratings of Far Right and Far Left, which it describes as "reserved for candidates with extreme views regarding the government's role." According to its website, "The Far Left evaluation describes candidates who consistently advocate for centralized, authoritarian government control advancing a secular worldview in lieu of respect for individual rights," and "[c]andidates are eligible for a Far Right evaluation if they have taken a firm public stand advocating for no civil government."

Unclassifiable

Described as:

“

[A] candidate who may possess some liberal or conservative views but who has published or posted material unacceptable to both liberals and conservatives. For example, a candidate who posts pornographic material, is anti-Semitic, advocates race-based supremacy, etc.

”

Panelists

Ratings are developed by volunteer panelists. iVoterGuide describes these panelists as "biblically minded citizens who desire to held voters determine which candidates will stand up for the issues they care about most." Panelists are divided into two groups: standard panelists, who provide an initial rating, and oversight panelists, who review those ratings.

iVoterGuide provides nationwide election research, voting information, and candidate evaluations. According to its website, iVoterGuide's candidate evaluations are designed to communicate how a candidate will govern if elected. The candidate evaluations range from "Verified Liberal" to "Verified Conservative."

The website also features a sample ballot lookup tool.

Funding

iVoterGuide became a division of AFA Action in 2021. In 2022, AFA Action reported a revenue of $1,888,338 and $1,602,564 in expenses.

Prior to its acquisition, AFA Action provided grants to iVoterGuide totaling $40,000 in 2020 and $5,003 in 2021.

Contact

• Contact form: Link
• Phone: 662-821-2024
• Mailing address: P.O. Drawer 3925 Tupelo, MS 38803

External links

• iVoterGuide
• AFA Action