the future
In the Words of a Partner City Leader:
“This is not just about turnout. It’s about residents believing they belong in the future of their city and choosing to participate in it.”
From Pilot to Scalable Movement
Cities Forward is building toward a future where cities invest in civic trust as long-term infrastructure, not short-term engagement. Block by block and neighborhood by neighborhood, this work focuses on rebuilding the everyday connections that make participation meaningful and sustainable.
We are entering a new phase centered on multi-year partnerships with cities that are committed to sustained coordination and follow-through. Too often, residents are engaged only during election cycles and asked to participate without seeing tangible improvements in their daily lives. This pattern weakens trust and reinforces disengagement. Cities Forward exists to help cities break that cycle by investing in civic infrastructure that endures beyond any single campaign.
A Long-Term Direction
Over multiple years, Cities Forward partners with cities to strengthen the civic conditions that make participation worthwhile. By embedding capacity within local government and aligning service providers and community-based organizations around shared goals, we support cities in building trust, improving coordination, and steadily closing persistent turnout gaps with their states.
2025–2026: Deepening Local Civic Infrastructure
• Expand embedded civic capacity within city government to lead sustained engagement efforts
• Formalize and strengthen citywide coalitions of service providers and community-based organizations
• Build neighborhood-level listening-to-action cycles that connect participation to visible improvements in residents’ lives
2026–2027: Strengthening Coordination and Learning
• Support cities in refining engagement strategies based on resident insight and lived experience
• Facilitate cross-city learning among long-term partners to share practical lessons and tools
• Reinforce shared norms around responsiveness, follow-through, and accountability
• Help cities integrate civic engagement into everyday government operations
• Support partners in sustaining participation across election cycles
• Continue strengthening the conditions for cities to reduce turnout gaps over time
2027–2028: Sustaining Trust and Participation
our long term vision
Local governments are trusted community partners, not distant institutions.
Neighborhood-level engagement is constant, relational, and inclusive.
Voting is viewed as one meaningful expression of belonging, not a moment of pressure.
Residents feel connected to their city and confident in their role in shaping it.
Cities nationwide achieve turnout parity with their states by 2028.