Outlet profile

UnidosUS

U.S. center-left Latino advocacy group

Owned byIndependent 501(c)(3) nonprofit based in Washington, D.C. It has no parent company or owner. A board of directors governs it, and Janet Murguía is president and CEO. A separate affiliated entity, UnidosUS Action Fund, handles advocacy work that is not tax-deductible.

FundingFoundation and corporate grants, individual donations, and government grants. Foundations reportedly gave at least $158 million between 2000 and 2017. Government grants were about $11.2 million in 2023, roughly 20 percent of income. It also draws funds from a network of affiliated community organizations.

On the administrationbroadly critical

Background

UnidosUS began in 1968 as the Southwest Council of La Raza. Herman Gallegos, Julian Samora, and Ernesto Garza founded it with seed money from the Ford Foundation, the National Council of Churches, and the United Auto Workers. In 1973 it became the National Council of La Raza (NCLR) and moved its headquarters to Washington, D.C. In July 2017 it renamed itself UnidosUS, saying the change would reach younger and more diverse audiences. The old name had also drawn criticism from some conservatives. It works through policy research, lobbying, public statements, and a network of local affiliate organizations. Its work covers immigration, education, health, housing, and economic issues. It says it is nonpartisan, but critics on the right, such as Influence Watch, describe it as aligned with progressive causes. Federal grants reportedly stopped from 2018 to 2020, during Trump's first term. Under Trump's second term, its statements have criticized the "failed mass deportation campaign" and called on Congress to rein in DHS. In 2026 it joined LULAC Institute, Mi Familia en Acción, and Latino Victory Foundation in a coalition to register and turn out Latino voters before the midterms.

Sources

Profile compiled 2026-10-31; refreshed when ownership, funding, or the administration changes.

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