Even considering the full red tilt of the Kansas Legislature and a coming political campaign heavy with qualified Republican contenders for governor, dark money sources continue to pump phenomenal amounts of cash to its operatives in the Sunflower State, hoping through technology-centered voter registration and motivation efforts to chip away at the red logistics and paint blue underneath.
One of those nonprofits, the “non-partisan” “Loud Light” run by founder and former LGBTQ activist Davis Hammet, has fattened its bankroll since 2013 to some $1.3 million according to public tax filings, and is shooting some of that wad in a legal battle trying to overturn stricter election day ballot deadlines recently made into law by the Kansas Legislature.
Brief History
Davis Hammet, founder of Loud Light, drove from Florida to Kansas in 2013 to protest Westboro Baptist Church and its pastor, Fred Phelps in Topeka.
By Dec. 2015 Davis Hammet incorporated Loud Light in the State of Floridafor his political activism in Kansas. It is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit.
2018
In a Nov. 2018 Washington Post op-ed Davis Hammet describes his journey to Kansas and early involvement in Kansas politics.
Hammet said he “decided to leave LGBTQ activism to create a nonprofit, Loud Light, and devote myself to voter registration and turnout.” Hammet’s Washington Post op-ed was a perfect ad to solicit funds from national progressive donors for work in Kansas.
The op-ed says Hammet connected in 2018 with Brian McClendon, the Democratic candidate for Kansas Secretary of State, to build “a digital form that bypasses the obstacles and makes [voter] registration easy.”
The new KSvote.org web page allows anyone to bypass the Kansas voter registration form and use the federal form to avoid questions like “Date Residence Established” and “Driver’s License Number.”
Hammet now has dozens of progressive groups linking to KSvote.org for voter registrations, which allows collection of person information before forwarding the applications to county election officials.
In the 2018 WaPo story Hammet described making connections with newly elected LGBTQ Democratic officials in Kansas, including Sharice Davids in Congress KS-03, and Brandon Woodard and Susan Ruiz in the Kansas legislature.
In Sharice Davids’ press release in Feb. 2018 announcing her run for Congress she plugged the KSVote.org web site for voter registrations.
2020
To work outside 501(c)(3) restrictions, Loud Light Civic Action was incorporated in Florida by Hammet in May 2020.
The Swing Left Impact Report gave details about how Hammet used his new 501(c)(4) nonprofit for the 2020 election.
2021
Loud Light launched New Frontiers “to build economic, social, and political power through culturally relevant grassroots organizing and local issue advocacy in Southwest Kansas; the youngest and most diverse region in the state.”
2022
Value Them Both Primary Election
Loud Light introduced their “Vote Neigh” project used on social media to oppose the VTB constitutional amendment with help from other Kansas progressive groups.
The 2022 Impact Report from the Rural Democracy Initiative, which was funded by dark money Arabella Advisors’ Windward Funds (aka Heartland Fund) and the Sixteen Thirty Fund (aka Rural Victory Fund), highlighted the Vote Neigh pro-abortion project.
General Election
Loud Light used interns, observers and volunteers across the state in 2022 to push for Democratic candidates in Kansas.
Loud Light carefully tracks voter turnout in Kansas by age.
2023
In May 2023 Loud Light unionized to become Loud Light Workers United SEIU Local 513.
Loud Light’s New Frontiers project promoted LGBTQ+ books for children in the Dodge City Library.
2024
Nonprofit Tax Filings
Summary of IRS 990 tax filings for Loud Light and Loud Light Action:
Loud Light: 501(c)(3) nonprofit
Loud Light Civic Action: 501(c)(4) nonprofit
Both nonprofits end each year with gradually increasing net assets. Together the nonprofits have over $1.3 million in net assets.
Known Donors
Loud Light
Loud Light’s largest donor, Alliance for Youth Organizing, has significant ties to George Soros’ Foundation to Promote Open Society and dark money sources including Arabella Funds (New Venture Fund; Telescope Fund and Windward Fund), NEO Philanthropy and Tides Foundation.
Loud Light received funds directly from dark money sources Tides Foundation ($302,500) and Arabella’s Windward Fund ($250,000) and New Venture Fund ($75,000).
The Kansas Health Foundation and the Health Forward Foundation gave Loud Light a total of $400,000 for KHF’s “integrated voter engagement” project.
Loud Light Action
All donors to Loud Light Action have connections to George Soros’ nonprofits, directly or indirectly.
Related
 | Rural Democracy Initiative spent $200,000 in Kansas in 2023 from “dark money” Arabella Advisors’ fundsEARL F GLYNN·APRIL 3, 2024Read full story |
Loud Light and other Kansas nonprofits are part of the “Rural Democracy Initiative” started by the Arabella Advisor’s Windward Fund and Sixteen Thirty Fund.
 | Gov. Kelly’s office reveals letter triggering meetings about “Compliance with Federal Voting Laws”EARL F GLYNN·SEPTEMBER 14, 2022Read full story |
Davis Hammet and Loud Light were instrumental in pressuring Gov. Laura Kelly to mail 277,000 voter registration forms to public assistance recipients in 2020.
Kansas open record requests to learn more about how this happened have been stonewalled by the Kansas Department of Health and Environment and the Department of Children and Families. KORA complaints to the Kansas Attorney General’s office about this matter are still under review.
Check online for revisions and updates.
Earl Glynn – Watchdog Lab
Earl F. Glynn is a mostly-retired data scientist, scientific programmer, software engineer and physical scientist living in the Kansas City metro area, and the publisher of the substack Watchdog Lab.
