Keenan Steiner makes his way along Charlotte 's secured streets , struggling to put on his tie and manage his monogrammed backpack at the same time . The 27-year-old is on a mission : He 's looking for a party . Not just any party . He works with the Sunlight Foundation , a nonpartisan , nonprofit group that advocates for greater government transparency . His goal at the Democratic National Convention , as it was at the Republicans ' confab in Tampa : to crash as many parties as he can , then blog about them . Since 2008 , his organization 's Political Party Time website has been tracking exclusive , behind-the-scenes events where politicians and special interests meet , often out of the spotlight . The groups hosting these events , Steiner says , hope to influence the outcome of the November elections -- as well as lawmakers ' votes in Congress and state capitols . By his count , there were at least 400 parties planned during the DNC and 200 during the Republican National Convention . `` All the big players are at the conventions at once , '' he says , `` so it is sort of like being in the Washington party circuit on steroids . '' Tonight Steiner decides to stop by Planned Parenthood Political Action Fund 's `` Sex , Politics , and Cocktails '' party first . The organization has been under recent attack from Republicans in Congress who have repeatedly tried to shut off federal funding for the organization 's family planning efforts . The Planned Parenthood Action Fund , the group 's political arm and official host of the party , has spent nearly $ 2 million during this year 's election cycle -- most of it on negative ads against Republicans , according to the Center for Responsive Politics . While groups like Planned Parenthood Action Fund spend millions to elect Democrats , groups like Americans for Prosperity work to put Republicans in power . Steiner has an issue with the laws that regulate these types of groups , because they 're not required to reveal the names of the donors who ultimately pay for those ads . `` There is a real transparency issue here , '' Steiner says . Steiner says he tried but failed to get into the Americans for Prosperity party in Tampa . Here in Charlotte he does n't have a ticket , but he sees a friend outside the Planned Parenthood party who helps . He says he can usually talk his way into events . At his friend 's urging , security waves Steiner and his Sunlight Foundation colleague Liz Bartolomeo through . They even let them use the velvet-lined VIP line to bypass the crowd . Inside , smartly dressed older women sit in a line on comfortable couches , checking their email on smartphones . A man wearing an Obama ball cap orders a drink called `` Safe Sex Champagne '' for his girlfriend . He 's having the `` Obamatini . '' A woman clutching one of the `` We love Michelle '' banners that had been handed out on the convention floor earlier in the evening keeps knocking it into people as she joyfully dances `` The Electric Slide . '' The giveaways here are simple and , in some cases , intended to provoke a laugh . Condoms inside hot pink matchbook covers lay on low tables around the dance floor . The front of the package says `` Protect Yourself From Romney & Ryan in this Election . '' It 's an advertisement for Planned Parenthood 's Women Are Watching website . `` This party seems like a way to drum up enthusiasm with the base , '' Steiner says , as he makes his way to the bar to talk with someone he knows . `` It 's not a party where you will rub shoulders with governors , and people are n't necessarily sowing the seeds for laws that will be written next year here like we 've seen at some of the super-elite parties , but it still is important , '' Steiner says . He pulls out a small Moleskine pad and takes notes as he talks to someone by the bar . The loud disco music suddenly fades away , and the emcee tells the excited crowd that two special guests have arrived . The floor goes wild as actress Ashley Judd stands in front of a hot pink `` Sex , Politics '' banner with House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi at her side . `` The Democrats have clearly decided their work for women is a winning issue for them , and Pelosi is a rock star among the Democratic base , '' Steiner says . `` Homocon '' during the conventions . Pelosi talks about the Democrats ' support for women 's issues -- among the convention themes earlier that evening -- then encourages the crowd to support the president . After Pelosi wraps up her speech , she does a little dance as the '70s hit `` Celebration '' plays her loudly off the stage . She poses for photos with Planned Parenthood Political Action Fund leaders and other VIPs . People start to dance again . Andra Gillespie , a political science professor at Emory University who was in Charlotte to observe the convention , says parties such as this energize the base on particular issues . They are also mutually beneficial to the people who attend . `` Some will show up to these parties for nice swag or good food or to show their support for a particular political message , sure , '' Gillespie said . `` But it 's also aimed at the fledging county commission candidate who shows up at the convention . `` The fact that Pelosi is there gives them a chance to take a picture with her and then tweet it out or put it on their Facebook page . It gives them a certain type of credibility . It makes them look important , and they 'll remember an organization that made this happen . '' Steiner says there were several splashy events at the RNC . Though fewer in number than at the DNC , the parties were equally high profile . At the Florida Aquarium , scantily clad women dressed as mermaids floated in a tank as guests at the Distilled Spirits Council party ordered drinks from multiple bars . In `` A Salute to the House and Senate Energy and Commerce Committees , '' attendees could shag balls and take batting practice at Tropicana Field for a charitable donation . A $ 15,000 donation got people into a private reception with former Florida Gov . Jeb Bush , courtesy of the Foundation for Florida 's Future . It 's midnight back in Charlotte before Steiner and Bartolomeo head out past streams of other party-hoppers and make their way to a swank hotel near the convention center . The lobby has a different feel than the Planned Parenthood party . Well-dressed guests sit at a tiny table by the bar with a couple bottles of expensive Veuve Clicquot champagne . Sen. John Kerry stands in the corner having a hushed but animated conversation with two equally tall men . And more people carrying `` We love Michelle '' signs , now somewhat crushed , make their way toward the elevator . On the hotel 's second floor is `` Come Together : A Late Night Celebration '' honoring the National Black Caucus of State Legislators . Steiner does n't have an invitation here either , but he blends into the crowd to make his way into the fancy ballroom . The event invitations advertise the party 's sponsors . Steiner says he noticed their names on a giant screen next to the dance floor . Waste Management , Amerigroup , Maximus and VS2 were among the hosts . Gillespie says some people may be uncomfortable with the role corporations play behind the scenes at such events , but she thinks they are necessary . `` Taking corporate funding for them is a double-edged sword since you do need someone to pay for it , '' she says . `` You do n't want to use public funds for a party . `` That type of corporate sponsorship may suggest they have more influence than others with politicians , and some may take issue with it , but groups do n't have the money to do this on their own and they want to attract the right people to their events . `` People wo n't show up if the party is boring . '' Men with lapel pins identifying them as state legislators or congressmen make their way into the party . Bartolomeo points out others wearing special pins she says are given to big Obama donors . Steiner ignores the live band playing James Brown 's `` Sex Machine '' and forgoes the red , white and blue macaroons . Instead , he talks to people and takes notes . `` This is more a top-flight party than Planned Parenthood 's , as the guest list is more exclusive and the food , drink and space itself is some of the most expensive I 've seen , '' Steiner explains later . He speaks with a county commissioner running for Congress and her husband , a lawyer at McGuireWoods -- another of the evening 's sponsors . The party , he says , `` is about building relationships with people in business and the government . '' Craig Holman is a political ethics expert whose nonpartisan nonprofit , Public Citizen , has teamed up with Steiner 's organization in the party monitoring enterprise at the convention . He worries these parties play an outsized role at conventions . `` These conventions are supposed to be merely ... events to rally for these candidates , '' Holman says . `` But the lobbyists and special interest groups are indulging in a real habit of turning these conventions instead into lobby-fests . '' Gillespie has a different perspective . `` The conventions are really professional conferences , '' she said , `` and like most trade associations , networking is a big part of what you are doing here . '' `` Yes , the delegates are here to nominate their candidate , but behind the scenes you have a lot of local candidates trying to make connections , meet potential fundraisers and backers . That may be more important to them than the activities you see on TV . It 's hard to develop a profile for yourself and a reputation if you do n't know anyone . '' It 's past 1 a.m. when Steiner leaves the party and heads off to another . He hears the actor and hip-hop artist Common is performing at a party within driving distance . He 'd prefer not to stay out too late if possible ; he 's learned that a certain Super PAC is hosting a brunch at an undisclosed location in the morning . It 's supposed to be at a mansion , but he does n't know which one . At least not yet . Puppet protesters pull no punches .
Nonpartisan nonprofit tracks events where politicians , special interests meet . Comment: Writer 's goal : Crash as many RNC , DNC parties as he can and blog about them .