Civic News

This app wants to help people get more politically active

Modern Advocacy, founded by Quincey Gamble and Jay Steinmetz, gives organizations tools to provide a direct line to their reps.

Go vote. (Photo via Wikimedia Commons user Tom Arthur)

Quincey Gamble sees a lot of political energy out there. The progressive, and former executive director of the Maryland Democratic Party, has worked on a lot of campaigns. But he says there’s a difference coming off of last year’s heated election cycle.
“Citizen advocacy,” he said, “is at an all-time high.”
Now with a new app, he wants to give people a way to channel it.
With Barcoding, Inc. CEO Jay Steinmetz, Gamble is cofounder of Modern Advocacy. The mobile app is taking a local approach to getting in touch with elected leaders.

“So much gets overlooked at the state and local level,” Gamble said. But it’s where lots of the decisions that directly affect people’s lives happen, and that presents a chance to influence the most change, he said.

Citizen users can track specific pieces of legislation, and check out the voting records of their elected officials. The app also provides contact info for elected representatives. If you want to use your own words, that’s also an option. Gamble said a big goal is to provide a way for people who are busy and not as involved in politics to get involved.

Gamble said the startup is looking to provide the platform directly to advocacy groups. The startup will customize it for a specific campaign or organization. The organizers can add their own touches like target specific times for direct action, and load up emails that can be copied and pasted and sent to elected officials.

So how did the political activist and the tech entrepreneur link up? Basketball. Gamble and Steinmetz met about 10 years ago playing in early morning pickup games at Merritt Athletic Club. (Technical.ly Brooklyn is dabbling in something similar.) They often faced off in the games due to their towering height. Over time, they became friends and found a common interest in politics, Gamble said. The team also includes CTO Danny Logsdon.

Before you go...

Please consider supporting Technical.ly to keep our independent journalism strong. Unlike most business-focused media outlets, we don’t have a paywall. Instead, we count on your personal and organizational support.

3 ways to support our work:
  • Contribute to the Journalism Fund. Charitable giving ensures our information remains free and accessible for residents to discover workforce programs and entrepreneurship pathways. This includes philanthropic grants and individual tax-deductible donations from readers like you.
  • Use our Preferred Partners. Our directory of vetted providers offers high-quality recommendations for services our readers need, and each referral supports our journalism.
  • Use our services. If you need entrepreneurs and tech leaders to buy your services, are seeking technologists to hire or want more professionals to know about your ecosystem, Technical.ly has the biggest and most engaged audience in the mid-Atlantic. We help companies tell their stories and answer big questions to meet and serve our community.
The journalism fund Preferred partners Our services
Engagement

Join our growing Slack community

Join 5,000 tech professionals and entrepreneurs in our community Slack today!

Trending

14 tech community events to be thankful for in November

After the election, go to Thanksgiving dinner anyway

How 4 orgs give back to their local tech community

Hispanic tech workers more than double representation in key US cities

Technically Media