Most of the Lead21 senior staff, board of directors and membership reportedly have very close connections to the Republican Party and many Republican administrations (especially Arnold Schwarzenegger's administration in California, and the Bush Administration). Lead21 reports having a multi-partisan donor and membership base, including Democratic members, with no "political litmus test" for membership. Like many right-of-center think tanks, it has no partisanship requirement, but is rooted in traditional conservative- and libertarian-leaning values such as limited government, lower taxes, and pro-market policies.