Stewart Mott’s vision and guidance helped to shape the direction and early projects of FCG. Born in 1937 in Flint, Michigan, Stewart was the son of Charles Stewart Mott, an early executive of General Motors and, as such, Stewart was heir to a large sum of General Motors wealth and made his career out of giving much of that money away. In the 1960s and 1970s, Stewart became a well-known activist, highly devoted to his ideals. After the post-Watergate campaign reform laws of 1974 limited the amount that individuals could donate to candidates, Stewart began to devote much of his time and energy to FCG’s projects. FCG’s first projects in the 70’s included the Honest Government Project, which was involved in the case to keep Richard Nixon’s presidential papers public; the Military Audit Project, which investigated deals between the Department of Defense and military contractors; and The Almanac of American Politics, a detailed compendium of congressional districts and representatives.

Since 1974, FCG has fought corruption and abuse of power. FCG was led from 1984 until 2022 by Conrad Martin. In June 2022, Ian Gary took over as executive director of FCG. Following Gary’s departure in June 2026, Kat Norris has assumed the position of managing director. Achieving the goal of an open, transparent, and truly democratic American government remains an ongoing challenge. Although Stewart passed away in June of 2008, his legacy lives on with the work of FCG.