Common Ground.
Common Good.
The Citizens League is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that empowers people to engage in civic life and public policy to make Minnesota a better place to live and work for everyone.
Recent News
Meet the 2023 Capitol Pathways cohort
Coinciding with Minnesota’s 2023 legislative session, a new program year has begun, providing an immersive, hands-on policy experience.
Your year-end support is needed!
There has never been a more important time to show your support of coming together to find common ground, for the common good. If you’re able, please consider a gift today.
Citizens League Report: Serving in Elected Office
Read our new report on why people run, decline to run, remain serving, or step down from office, and the impact on local government.
Watch now: Run, Serve, and Lead: What it’s really like to serve in local elected office
This online event on in December 2022 highlighted findings of a new Citizens League report interviewing candidates and elected officials from all around the Twin Cities metro area and its suburbs.
Citizens League welcomes new board members in 2023
With great enthusiasm, the Citizens League Board of Directors has unanimously approved three new members to join the Board of Directors in 2023! We are excited to welcome this group to our all-volunteer board.
Capitol Pathways Student Application Now Open!
We are now recruiting students for the 2023 program year! Now in its eighth year, Capitol Pathways is a paid policy internship program for college students in Minnesota who identify as Black, Indigenous, or people of color (BIPOC).
Current Work
Minnesota Legislative Exchange
The Minnesota Legislative Exchange is a first-in-the-nation effort to build trust and bipartisan relationships in state legislatures. As Minnesota’s leading nonpartisan nonprofit focused on civic engagement and public policy solutions, Citizens League is proud to lead this important effort, intentionally forging new relationships to bridge divides and govern our state effectively.
Capitol Pathways
With the long-term goal of making our government truly representative of our communities, the program opens access to the Minnesota Capitol to the next generation of leaders of color. Through this program, interns build relationships with established Capitol leaders, gain exposure to various kinds of careers in policy, get real-world experience in career fields they would like to learn more about and build a strong professional resume in the process.
Strengthening Public Service
Citizens League is embarking on a new project to dig deeper and explore the unique challenges and barriers to public service, with a particular emphasis on non-elected roles and people who make our state’s local governments work.
Events
The Citizens League hosts forums for civil discussion across Minnesota. Our event series includes events that are open to the public, member-only and workplace events to help inform and engage Minnesotans on important policy and civic leadership discussions.