NCLC was said to have started as a venue for conservatives and libertarians, whom the group claimed were politically quiet in the San Francisco Bay Area—a region widely considered to be overtly liberal. Lead21 bills itself as "multi-partisan" in its membership demographic (which reportedly includes Republicans, Independents, Libertarians, and Democrats), but mostly appears to support Republicans and Libertarians as their platform of limited government, lower taxes, and pro-business policies tend to be embraced by those political bases. Lead21 explicitly states that its focus is not about partisan politics; that it is about supporting entrepreneurship and innovation. However, the organization does not appear to have supported any Democratic candidates or campaigns except California Governor Gavin Newsom. Lead21 has hosted Mayor Newsom, and several board members of the organization as well as several of its top members have been appointed to San Francisco city commissions. It is widely noted that Newsom's election win against Matt Gonzalez in the contest for San Francisco mayor in 2003 is often attributed to direct Republican turnout in his support.