Background

Keep Arizona Blue, a PAC led by passionate students at University of Arizona, came to us to build a tool with two key objectives: first, provide voters with an easy way to see the candidates on their ballot, and second, highlight which of those candidates had earned the organization’s endorsement and support. They needed a solution that was branded,  mobile-optimized, user-friendly, and capable of handling detailed local data, including school board races.

Approach

Kinetic began by conducting a feasibility study to determine how to access and utilize publicly available election data. Leveraging the Arizona Clean Elections Commission and Google Maps APIs, we built a powerful tool that allowed users to input their address and receive a tailored list of candidates on their ballot. We then customized the tool to indicate Keep Arizona Blue’s endorsements, ensuring supporters could easily align their votes with the organization’s recommendations. The challenge came with granular data—particularly at the local level, such as school board races, which weren’t fully supported by the API. To address this, we developed a workaround that allowed us to integrate these critical local endorsements. The tool was rigorously tested for edge cases to ensure a seamless user experience and reliable functionality across all scenarios.

Result

The ballot look-up tool was a resounding success. Thousands of supporters used it to educate themselves about their ballots and Keep AZ Blue leveraged the tool in digital ads and text campaigns to drive voter engagement. Beyond the immediate election, the tool has become a foundational piece of infrastructure for the organization, positioning them to maintain and expand voter education efforts in future cycles. Arizona was one of the few states where the youth vote trended for Harris over Trump. Kinetic is proud to continue our partnership with Keep AZ Blue, by helping them raise funds online to fund the incredible organizing work they do day in and day out.