Queering ANCs

Privacy Policy

You're safe with us.

Effective date: July 3, 2026 · Who we are: Queering ANCs is a program of Capital Stonewall Democrats. Reach us about privacy at [email protected]. See also how your data works.

Our community has real reasons to care about privacy — for many of us, privacy is safety. So we built this platform to collect as little as possible, keep you in control of what's visible, and never sell your data or use it for advertising. This policy explains, in plain language, what we collect, why, who we share it with, and the choices you have.

The short version

  • We collect only what we need to help you explore and run for office.
  • You are private by default. Nothing about you is public unless you choose to make it public.
  • We don't sell your data, run ads, or track you across the web.
  • We use your address only to find your district — we don't store your home address.
  • You can see, correct, export, or delete your information, and opt out of emails, anytime.
  • We never knowingly reveal that you're using this platform, and we never deadname you.

What we collect

When you sign in. Your email address, and — if you use "Sign in with Google" — basic Google profile information (name, email). We use magic links and sessions to keep you signed in.

When you take the readiness quiz. Your answers, including any issues you rank and reasons you share. If you enter an address to find your single-member district (SMD), we use it only to look up your district and do not store the full address — we keep just your district/ward if you're signed in.

As you learn and plan. Your module progress, your saved "why," your campaign plan and tasks, and your signature counts and target dates. For petition signatures, we track your numbers, not your signers' personal information — signer details stay on your paper petitions and go to the DC Board of Elections, not to us.

Well-being check-ins. If you choose to share a weekly check-in, we keep it private to you and use it only to offer support and tailor your plan. It is never scored, ranked, or shared, and you can delete it anytime.

Your profile and any public content. If you build a candidate profile, add a photo or logo, or post to a shared board or the "Reasons We're Running" wall, you choose what's private, cohort-only, or public. Public content is opt-in, reviewed, and you can remove it at any time. We never publish your home address.

When you ask for help. If you contact a mentor or the team through the support form, we collect the topic(s) you choose, anything you choose to write, and how to reach you. This goes to the Capital Stonewall Democrats mentor team and is never published.

When you give. Donations are processed by our payment provider, GoodChange. We receive confirmation and basic details to thank you and keep records; we do not collect or store your card number. Gifts support the program, not individual candidates.

Automatically. Standard technical data (like IP address and browser type) processed by our host to run and secure the site, and privacy-respecting, cookieless analytics so we can improve it. We do not use Google Analytics or cross-site advertising trackers. We use a bot-protection check on some forms.

Preview mode. Before you sign in or submit a form, anything you enter stays in your browser only and is not sent to our servers. You can clear it anytime.

How we use your information

To provide the platform (your account, learning, plan, tools); to support you (mentor requests, check-ins, reminders you've opted into); to communicate with you (transactional email like sign-in links, and — only if you opt in — program updates); to keep the platform safe and working; and to improve our resources.

Improving resources — genuinely. We mean this: what we learn from you, we use to build stronger programs and better support for people like you — clearer resources, better mentorship, and tools that actually meet the moment you're in. We do this with aggregated, de-identified information (for example, the most common topics people ask for help with) to decide what to build next and to show our collective impact — never in a way that identifies or exposes you. We use your individual words or story only with your explicit, separate consent, and even then we anonymize by default. Helping you — and the next person who runs — is the only reason we hold your information.

What we never do — you're safe with us

We will never share your private information — your address, your contact details, your identity, your well-being check-ins, or anything else you give us — with anyone, for any purpose, except the narrow legal exceptions in "When we share information" below. We do not sell or rent your data. We do not serve ads or allow advertisers to target you. We do not track you across other websites. We do not make your participation, identity, or personal details public without your opt-in. We do not store your home address or your payment card number. We do not out you, and we never deadname you. Your information is here to help you, and for nothing else. You are safe with us.

One thing we can't shield: the public ballot

We want to be honest about the one place some of your information becomes public — and it is not us sharing it. When you file to run for office, the DC Board of Elections makes certain information a matter of public record — typically your full legal name, the home address on your voter registration, and the contact information on your filing. That is the law for everyone who appears on a ballot; it is outside our control, and it is never something we hand over. What we will do is tell you exactly what becomes public before you file, help you prepare for it, point you to the DC Board of Elections for any questions or options about your address, and support you in running as publicly — or as quietly — as you choose.

When we share information

We share only with service providers who help us run the platform, under agreements that limit them to that purpose:

  • Cloudflare — hosting, database, security, and cookieless analytics.
  • Resend — sending transactional and (opt-in) program email.
  • Action Network — managing opt-in email updates.
  • Google — "Sign in with Google" if you choose it, and Google Workspace, where we keep our own access-controlled backup of form submissions (so we never lose your request).
  • GoodChange — processing donations.

We may share information if required by law (for example, a valid legal request), or to protect the safety and rights of our community. We will resist overbroad requests where we lawfully can. We do not share your information for anyone's advertising.

Your choices and rights

You can, at any time: see the information we hold about you; correct it; export it; delete your account and data; opt out of program emails (transactional sign-in emails are required to use the account); and control what's visible about you, including a "run quieter" mode and pausing reminders. Signed in, use Manage your data in the "Run quieter" panel to see, download, or remove your information — one category at a time or your whole account. Or contact us at [email protected]. Depending on where you live, you may have additional rights to access, correct, or delete your information.

How long we keep information

We keep your account information until you delete your account or ask us to. We keep support requests for up to 24 months. Aggregated or anonymized information, which does not identify you, may be kept indefinitely.

How we protect it

We use encryption in transit, access controls, bot protection, and reputable infrastructure. No system is perfectly secure, but we minimize what we collect precisely so there is less to protect.

Sensitive information and safety

We treat information about your identity and well-being with particular care. You control your visibility at every step, public content is opt-in and removable, and we design to reduce risk for LGBTQ+ users. If you choose a wellbeing or safety topic when asking for help, we surface support resources right away and handle your request with extra care.

Users under 18

Some people eligible to run for ANC may be 16 or 17. If that's you, you're welcome here, and the same protections and minimal-collection practices apply. This platform is not directed to children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect their information.

Other sites we link to

We link to trusted sources like the DC Board of Elections (dcboe.org) for official voting and candidate information. Those sites have their own privacy policies, which govern your use of them.

Changes to this policy

If we make material changes, we'll update this page and the effective date, and — where appropriate — let you know.

Contact us

Questions or requests about your privacy: [email protected].