Building a Progressive South from the Ground Up
What We Do
The New Southern Majority (NSM) is a political action committee that backs progressive candidates running for local, county and state offices in the Deep South. We make independent expenditures (IEs) to conduct polling research and turn out the vote in support of our chosen candidates. Together with donors and community allies, we march for the South’s new majority: a diverse and growing population with a rich history of civil rights action and the potential to spark progressive change nationwide.
Where We Work
Alabama
Florida
Georgia
Louisiana
Mississippi
2024: A Year of Growth and Success
2024 marked the first year NSM invested in all five of our Deep South states, demonstrating the profound growth and success our donors have helped make possible in just three years.
NSM focused heavily on battleground school board races, going head-to-head with well-funded far-right candidates like those endorsed by antigovernment extremist group Moms for Liberty. Recent history has proven just how impactful school boards can be in their communities. They directly shape public education, a cornerstone of our democracy. It’s critical to make sure the people sitting on these boards prioritize their communities over hate, censorship and ignorance.
Three out of five of NSM’s victories were in school board races. Our opponents took notice. Moms for Liberty of Duval County, Florida, posted angrily on X (formerly Twitter), attempting to stoke fear about NSM’s presence in the race. It didn’t work.
In 2024, we were reminded of how vital partnerships are to successful political campaigns. NSM can’t be an expert on every community in the Deep South, but we can empower and align with those who are. In Florida, our community partners provided critical insights on school board races that helped NSM make faster, more strategic decisions on where to invest our limited funds. They provided insight that traditional research simply wouldn’t have provided us.
NSM knows it takes a village to win political races. We’re incredibly thankful for the progressive leadership growing in the Deep South and the communities exercising their hard-won right to participate in democracy. We’re also incredibly grateful for you.
Thank you for your moral and financial support of the New Southern Majority in 2024. Thank you for believing the South is winnable and that our values—justice, equity and liberation for all people—are worth fighting for. Let’s continue the march forward!
2024 By the Numbers
$860,000
invested in Southern races
487,166
potential voters texted and called
1.8M
estimated individuals reached
5
races won in the Deep South
11
Independent Expenditure campaigns in 5 states to support progressive candidates
17
digital video ads created for websites and TV streaming
12M
digital impressions
Sample social card.
667,590
mail pieces sent to voting households
Sample postcard.
Champions for Justice & Equity
Your support allowed NSM to bolster the campaigns of these winning candidates in 2024. They’re in their communities right now making a positive difference!
- Henry Whitehorn, Sheriff of Caddo Parish, Louisiana
- Nadia Combs, Public School Board Member of Hillsborough County, Florida
- Jessica Vaughn, Public School Board Member of Hillsborough, Florida
- Cindy Pearson, Public School Board Member of Duval County, Florida
- Shomari Figures, U.S. Representative for Alabama District 2
“New Southern Majority provides needed leadership for in-state allies and national partners looking to take strategic action in key races. Their expertise, guidance, and collaboration make it possible to run difference making programs. Where others turn their back and watch allies fail, NSM charges ahead and builds the coalitions we need to win short and long term.”
Ben Unger, Lab Strategies
Nadia Combs
“In 2024, Moms for Liberty targeted School Board seats just like mine to push their radical agenda. New Southern Majority stepped in ahead of the August elections as a counter-balance to those efforts and kept voters focused on what was at stake. I am grateful for the impact they made in my re-election, allowing me to continue making our schools places where all the students of Hillsborough County can learn and thrive.”
Nadia Combs, Public School Board Member of Hillsborough County, Florida
“… New Southern Majority [is] shining a light in the South. Their impact in the region is paramount to the ecosystem for social change. They are sensitive to the nuance of the communities they work in and their messages resonate with southerners because they are crafted by southerners. Change is coming and it will begin with the South.”
Charles Taylor, Mississippi State Conference
Looking Ahead to 2025
Our nation is in crisis. Decades of stagnant inequity and resentment have festered into toxic extremism. The far-right has weaponized this frustration, redirecting it onto the most vulnerable and historically maligned people in our society: immigrants, Jewish people, Muslims, low-income families, the LGBTQ+ community and others.
All three branches of the federal government are under Republican control, and an avalanche of regressive policies coming from every level continues to threaten our communities.
Still, we aren’t starting from zero in 2025. Every victory NSM has achieved in the past three years has prepared us to meet this moment and keep marching forward. Step by step, brick by brick, win by win, we’ll keep building a steady foundation for progress.
Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana and Mississippi are rich with civil rights history and home to some of the nation’s most impactful grassroots activists. NSM’s job isn’t to lead—it’s to support and empower the potential that’s always been there.
In 2025, we’ll continue working in the Deep South alongside progressive Black and Brown leaders. Alabama mayorships are up for reelection this year. Small towns in the state are notorious for unrepresentative government—25% of Alabama municipalities with a majority population of color have white mayors. It’s time to disrupt this trend. With the help of our community partners, NSM will closely monitor these races in 2025 to decide where and how we can invest.
Once more, thank you for being a friend and investor of New Southern Majority in 2024, 2025 and beyond!