ReportCommittee for Economic Development (The Conference Board)

A Stable Democracy at 250: Trusted Elections as the Foundation Report

2026

https://www.conference-board.org/research/solutions-briefs/a-stable-democracy-at-250-trusted-elections-as-the-foundation

What It Is: A 2026 solutions brief explaining why free and fair elections matter for democracy and the economy, tracking recent trends in voter confidence and election administration, and offering recommendations and best practices across the business community, election administration, the conduct of elections, federal/state/local roles, and information integrity — paired with an accompanying Elections Toolkit.

Why It Matters: As the brief puts it, free and fair elections are "a cornerstone of US democracy," underpinning both political stability and economic strength — a secure, credible, and accessible electoral system builds the business confidence companies need to operate with trust in governance and engage in shaping policy. That stake is measurable: confidence that votes will be counted accurately has slipped to 60% ahead of the 2026 midterms, down from a post-2024 high of 77%.

How to Use It: The brief's recommendations distill to three actions for business leaders: proactively encourage employee and community voting in a nonpartisan way; support election administration by recruiting poll workers and offering flexible scheduling; and share trusted, official information to counter election-related mis- and disinformation. Use the accompanying Elections Toolkit to put these into practice ahead of the midterms.

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401 – 418 of 418 results showing

ReportTransparency International Ireland

Responsible Lobbying: A Short Guide to Ethical Lobbying and Public Policy Engagement for Professionals, Executives and Activists

2015

Lays out core principles—transparency, integrity, accountability, and effectiveness—with practical examples to help professionals and organizations engage in ethical and responsible lobbying.

ArticleOxford

A Market Failures Approach to Business Ethics

Joseph Heath, 2014

This chapter introduces a “market failures” approach to business ethics, arguing that while profit is a core obligation, businesses also have a duty to avoid exploiting legal or structural gaps in the market in order to preserve trust, fair competition, and long-term legitimacy.

Article KPMG

A New Vision of Value: Connecting Corporate and Societal Value Creation

KPMG, 2014

This report explores two potential disconnects between corporate cash flows and value creation: Positive externalities where companies are not fully rewarded for the value they create for society, and negative externalities where they do not pay the full costs of production (but "externalize" some costs to society.)

By offering a simple method for conceptualizing these two types of externalities, the authors show how businesses can be prepared for three forces that will likely drive them toward internalization: regulation, stakeholder pressures, or market realities. This can provide a guide for companies to identify their long-term interests in policies that align business value with societal value.

ArticleStrategy + business

Does your Company Keep its Promises?

Elizabeth Doty, 2014

This article links corporate political responsibility to a company’s broader ability to uphold commitments to customers, employees, investors, and communities—which are critical to building and maintaining trust. It summarizes research that shows that, despite the best of intentions, companies often struggle to keep track of their commitments and coordinate to fulfill them. It goes on to offer seven practical strategies to avoid gaps between word and deed, and help companies sustain critical relationships and reputation.

ToolUN Global Compact

Guide for Responsible Corporate Engagement in Climate Policy 

2013

This 60-page report elaborates on the “how” of engaging in meaningful climate policy engagement. Illustrative examples spanning the globe are grounded by five core elements of responsible policy engagement and three key actions to put said elements into practice.

BookHarvard University Press

The Fracturing of the American Corporate Elite

Mark Mizruchi, 2013

Advances the argument that American CEOs, seemingly more powerful today than ever, have abrogated the key leadership role they once played in addressing national challenges, with grave consequences for American society.

ReportUN

UN Guiding Principles on Business & Human Rights

2011

Widely accepted multi-sector framework outlining expectations for companies to evaluate and disclose their commitment to human rights, identify salient issues, identifying processes for responding to claims, conducting due diligence and identifying strategies to prevent, mitigate or remediate adverse impacts on individuals and communities. Supports corporate political responsibility by outlining political rights as human rights, and providing established processes to draw on.

ReportHeritage Foundation

Cronyism: Undermining Economic Freedom & Prosperity Around the World

2010

This article outlines how crony capitalism distorts the market, violates the principles of free markets, and risks value creation for all, as reflected in the Heritage Foundation's Index of Economic Freedom.

ReportTransparency International's Global Corruption Report

Corrupting the Rules of the Game: From Legitimate Lobbying to Capturing Regulations and Policies

Dieter Zinnbauer, 2009

What It Is: An early analysis in Transparency International's 2009 Global Corruption Report, examining the line between legitimate corporate lobbying — an accepted input to democratic decision-making — and lobbying that captures regulations and policy for private benefit.

Why It Matters: The report backs its argument with striking figures: politically connected firms are estimated to account for nearly 40% of market capitalization in the UK and 80% in Russia; roughly 2,500 lobbying organizations and 15,000 lobbyists compete for influence in Brussels alone; and US state-level lobbying spending averages $200,000 per legislator, with five lobbyists vying for each lawmaker's attention. Outlines the importance of considering Legitimacy of lobbying efforts, and Responsibility not to crowd out other voices."

How to Use It: Use this chapter's distinction between legitimate lobbying and policy capture as a discussion input when running a Public Affairs Governance Review with Third Side Strategies' Principled Influence Guide — particularly Step Two's policy assessment — to help sharpen the language in your Public Affairs Engagement Policy defining where advocacy ends and undue influence begins.

ArticleSSIR

Lobbying for Good

Peterson/Pftizer, 2009

Outlines a framework to help companies determine how to engage with social issues and an appropriate level of engagement—ranging from supporter to champion—describing the key to an effective engagement plan that integrates functional silos, all bolstered by compelling case studies.

ReportUN Environmental Programme

A legal framework for the integration of environmental, social and governance issues into institutional investment

Freshfields, 2005

This seminal report from Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, addresses the question of whether institutional investors such as pension funds and insurance companies are legally permitted to integrate environmental, social and governance issues into their investment decision-making and ownership practices. The study describes the legal framework for institutions in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, the UK and the US.

ReportAccountAbility, UN Global Compact

Towards Responsible Lobbying

Simon Zadek, 2005

This guide provides a framework for companies and NGO's to use to determine whether their lobbying practices are responsible.

BookBerrett Koehler

Walking the Talk

Charles Holliday, Jr., Stephan Schmidheiny, Philip Watts, 2002

The book opens by establishing the minimum expectation that businesses support the right rules of the game—those rewarding long-term value creation rather than destruction—and shows how companies can live their values through cross-sector collaboration, eco-efficiency, and strategies advancing prosperity, planet, and people, supported by real-world cases.

BookHarvard University Press

The Logic of Collective Action: Public Goods and the Theory of Groups

Mancur Olson, Jr., 1971

Mancur Olson’s classic work explains why individuals often fail to organize effectively around shared interests, even when collective action would benefit all. His “free rider” problem and distinction between small and large groups reshape understanding of labor unions, corporations, and political coalitions. Olson’s framework underlies modern theories of governance, lobbying, and institutional design—key foundations for Corporate Political Responsibility.

WebsiteBraver Angels

Depolarization Dojo (Beta)

Braver Angels

The Depolarization Dojo is an interactive training platform designed to help individuals practice skills for reducing political polarization and engaging constructively across disagreement. Through simulations, exercises, and dialogue-based learning, it teaches users how to de-escalate conflict, challenge assumptions, and strengthen civic trust in increasingly polarized social and organizational environments.

ArticleMIT Sloan

Finding the Middle Ground in a Politically Polarized World

Craig Smith and Daniel Korschun

Presents a framework for when companies should present forceful or tempered political positions based on their publicly stated values and materiality.

Website

Long-term Stock Exchange Listing Standards

The Long-Term Stock Exchange (LTSE) listing standards include expectations that companies will take responsibility for long-term decision-making across strategy, governance, executive compensation, stakeholder engagement, and investor relations. These standards are designed to help businesses build sustainable value over time for all stakeholders, rather than focusing on short-term gains, allowing investors to better assess long-term capital investments.

ReportSaylor Academy

Mastering Public Relations

Saylor Foundation

This textbook section introduces major corporate and agency public-relations subfunctions: issues management, media and community relations, CSR and philanthropy, investor relations, marketing communications, government relations, lobbying, internal communication, crisis management, and more. It shows how communication, advocacy, and stakeholder engagement are structured inside organizations, shaping how they respond to risks, opportunities, and public scrutiny.

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