Based in Mountain View, California, the site allows its members, which it calls "Votizens", to learn about issues and elections, and take collective action with other committed voters through social media.
In September 2010 Votizen announced it had raised $1.5 million in funding led by Peter Thiel and Sean Parker of Founders Fund with participating investors including 500 Startups, David Cowan, Keith Rabois, Ron Conway, Mark Goines, Founder Collective, Felicis Ventures, PivotNorth, Steve Blank, Eric Ries, Shervin Pishevar, and Tom Shields.
Votizen plans to have their virtual precinct walks boost voter participation and play a big role in the 2012 elections.
[7] In February 2012, Votizen announced a $750,000 convertible funding round led by Sean Parker with celebrity investors including Ashton Kutcher, Guy Oseary, and Lady Gaga's manager Troy Carter investing as well.
Parker, who said he's “not a huge believer in direct democracy,” is exploring ways to leverage social media to influence politics with investments such as Votizen.