Affinity

In the aftermath of the Trump election in 2016, there was a wave of new grassroots organizing to stop Trump's policy agenda from being implemented and to create the grassroots electoral infrastructure to win back congress and the presidency. Affinity.works was started to address real needs grassroots organizers were having: how to mobilize and coordinate volunteer networks.

The platform emerged from direct collaboration with organizers on the ground. We discovered that existing tools were either too expensive, too complex, or designed for top-down organizing rather than distributed grassroots movements. Affinity was built to fill this gap.

As an open-source platform, Affinity democratized access to organizing tools. Groups that couldn't afford expensive CRM systems could now manage volunteers, coordinate events, and track their impact. The platform was designed to be simple enough for volunteer organizers to use without extensive training.

The technical architecture reflected our values: distributed, resilient, and community-owned. We used modern web technologies to create a responsive, accessible platform that worked on any device. The API-first design allowed groups to integrate Affinity with their existing tools and workflows.

Affinity's impact extended beyond the technology. By providing professional-grade tools to grassroots organizations, we helped level the playing field between well-funded campaigns and community organizers. The platform facilitated coordination between groups, amplifying their collective impact and helping build the infrastructure for long-term political change.