Pure Pitch Rally winner says local investment will push Fast Democracy toward focus on KC politics
October 23, 2018 | Austin Barnes
Offering voters a crystal clear look at the legislative process is winning support for Fast Democracy within the Kansas City startup ecosystem, said Jill Kline, the CEO behind the evolving bill tracking platform.
“This was always the roadmap. We started out with some of these basic features, wanting to help the general public get their foot in the door to Jefferson City, statehouses, and Congress,” Kline said of the company’s first-year growth that has recently produced a slew of new tools to its more than 800 users.
The non-partisan web platform allows users to instantly track and react to legislation, review the voting history of lawmakers, and connect with their legislators in real time. Additions to the Fast Democracy cabinet of offerings include instant notification of bill actions, amendment notifications, and a first of its kind bill comparison feature, Kline explained.
“With our new, advanced analytics, we’re not only giving subscribers the ability to follow what’s happening in the legislature, but we’re also giving them the ability to predict outcomes and showing them the pathway to success,” Kline said.
Upgrades to the company’s platform come hot on the heels of a Pure Pitch Rally competition that landed Fast Democracy a $7,000 investment during Techweek Kansas City, said co-founder Sara Baker.
“To have so many people stand up and say, ‘I’m giving my investment to Fast Democracy because I believe in the values,’ that ‘government should be transparent,’ It was wonderful to see that and hear that,” Baker said.
Anatolij Gelimson, Sara Baker, and Jill Cline, Fast Democracy
The company was also awarded a Digital Sandbox investment of $25,000 this summer.
Participation in the Pure Pitch Rally has also rallied the company dozens of new supporters, in the form of networking and investment opportunities, Baker further elaborated.
Upgraded tools aren’t the only innovative additions to Fast Democracy, Baker revealed. The company will now offer in-depth tracking of local politics with Kansas City and St. Louis named the rollouts flagship cities.
“[Tracking] will be down to a very granular level,” Baker said. “We’re really looking towards how we can bring on the team who can help us achieve that.”
Additional tools could be made available before the start of the 2019 legislative session, Kline said. Local users will be able to track city council and community politics in early-November.
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