• Roughly double the number of on-the-ground field organizers across the states. In coordination with Democratic state parties, by March there will be hundreds of staff on the ground in these battlegrounds.  
• Open additional offices in each state.
• Fund on-the-ground data staff to help ensure organizers are reaching out to a universe of potential voters in the most efficient way possible and with the most effective messages.
• Fund additional operations staff — some of the most important behind-the-scenes roles that allow a campaign to grow their organization quickly.

• Communications staff who are working to localize and define Trump’s record in six  states (PA, MI, WI, AZ, FL and OH);
• Organizing staff in eight states (AZ, CO, FL, MI, NV, PA, TX and WI);
• Voter protection and/or additional organizing staff in seven states (AZ, FL, GA, NC, MI, PA, WI). In partnership with other groups in the Democratic ecosystem, we are building an unprecedented, on the ground voter protection infrastructure across multiple states.  
• The DNC has also increased it’s monthly investment in every state party by 33 percent since this time in 2016. 

Democratic National Committee

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

August 22, 2019

WASHINGTON, DC -- Today the Democratic National Committee announces key hires to engage critical communities ahead of the 2020 election: Women’s Political Director Taylor Barnes, Asian American and Pacific Islander Political Director John Santos, African American Political Director Cyrus Garrett, and Native American Political Director Theresa Sheldon. These hires build on previous hires, including Rural Political Director Libby Schneider, Labor Political Director Tucker McDonald, and Interfaith Outreach Director Dr. Derrick Harkins. 

“Diversity and inclusion have always been the strength of our Democratic coalition,” said DNC Chair Tom Perez. “Now more than ever we will need a strong team that can harness the energy and excitement in our base communities to elect Democrats up and down the ballot. I am confident that the team we are building at the DNC is ready to build the coalitions we need heading into one of the most important elections of our lifetimes.”

“Building a team that reflects the diverse coalition that we need to win back the White House and the Senate is one of our priorities,” said DNC Political Director Muthoni Wambu Kraal. “I am proud of the diversity of our staff, and we are lucky to have Taylor, John, Cyrus, Theresa, Libby, Tucker, and Derrick leading our efforts in laying the groundwork to victory in 2020.” 

Taylor has been named the Women’s Political Director, previously serving as the Chief of Staff to the Political & Organizing Team. She was on the founding team of the United State of Women, a womxn's rights non-profit that worked in partnership with the Obama Administration's White House Council on Women and Girls. Taylor served as Director during the first White House United State of Women Summit in Washington, DC and Director and Chief of Staff during the second United State of Women Summit in Los Angeles in 2018. 

John has been promoted to AAPI Political Director to develop and promote the DNC’s outreach efforts to AAPI communities. He will also serve as the liaison to the Veterans and Military Families Council. Most recently, he served as the DNC’s Western Regional Press Secretary and AAPI Media Director. Previously, he served in the U.S. Army as the Deputy Press Secretary for the Combined Joint Task Force - Operation Inherent Resolve during a year-long deployment in Kuwait and Iraq. Additionally, he previously served as the Health Policy Assistant Director for the American Legion and Chair for Communications at KAYA: Filipino Americans for Progress. 

Cyrus has been named the African American Political Director, collaborating with a wide range of partners to expand and promote our overall African American community engagement, with an emphasis on building out programming to reach Black men. Cyrus previously served as the Deputy Director of the Obama Foundation’s My Brother’s Keeper Alliance where he led the grant implementation and monitoring for 19 organizations across 10 states. Cyrus has also worked as the Executive Director for New York City’s Young Men’s Initiative where he worked on tackling disparities for young men of color. 

Theresa has been named the Native American Political Director, tasked with implementing a comprehensive outreach and engagement strategy for Indian Country.  Theresa is an enrolled citizen of the Tulalip Tribes in Washington state and has spent the last decade working to protect and enhance Tribes’ inherent rights, sovereignty and treaty rights in policy and law. Most recently, Theresa consulted for EMILY’s List, building its first Native American training and outreach program. Previously she served two terms on the Tulalip Tribal Council and served for seven years in Tulalip’s Governmental Affairs Department as a Policy Analyst.

Libby has been serving as the Rural Political Director, spearheading the DNC’s outreach and mobilization efforts in rural communities. Previously, Libby served as the campaign manager for Sen. Heidi Heitkamp’s 2018 reelection campaign in North Dakota. She also served as a Legislative Assistant to Sen. Heitkamp’s Senate office and Special Adviser to former North Dakota Sen. Kent Conrad. Libby’s other campaign experience include serving as campaign manager for Ryan Taylor’s 2012 North Dakota gubernatorial campaign.   

Tucker has been serving as the Labor Political Director, tasked with expanding our partnerships with labor groups and mobilizing labor voters across the country. Prior to joining the DNC, Tucker served as the Political Director of the American Federation of Government Employees and the National Association of Letter Carriers. Prior to working in the labor movement, Tucker worked for Bob Graham and Wesley Clark’s 2004 presidential campaigns and Tony Sanchez’s 2002 Texas gubernatorial campaign. 

Dr. Harkins has been serving as the Interfaith Outreach Director, a role he also held in 2012. In this position, Dr. Harkins leads the DNC’s outreach to communities of faith and expand our partnerships on faith-related issues. Previously, he was the Senior Vice President for Innovations in Public Programming for Union Theological Seminary in New York City and the Senior Pastor of Nineteenth Street Baptist Church in Washington D.C., where he led the congregation in initiatives ranging from providing health education and access, to international relief and development. He was also an adviser to the Obama Administration and the National Director of Faith Engagement for Enroll America.

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Patrick has been promoted to Chief Mobilization Officer, a role he had been filling on an interim basis. He oversaw the DNC's grassroots fundraising in 2018, leading the program to its highest-raising year in nearly a decade. This is Patrick’s second tenure at the DNC -- he previously served as the DNC’s Email Director in the 2014 cycle. He is a veteran of Hillary Clinton's 2016 campaign and Barack Obama's 2012 campaign.

Last month, Brandon Gassaway joined as National Press Secretary. Brandon most recently worked as Press Secretary on Tim Kaine's senate campaign and Communications Director for former Congressional Black Caucus Chair Congressman Cedric Richmond. He is a veteran of Hillary Clinton’s 2016 campaign.

“I’m thrilled to announce that Muthoni Wambu Kraal will join our team as National Political and Organizing Director, Patrick Stevenson will be promoted to Chief Mobilization Officer, and Brandon Gassaway has come on board as National Press Secretary. Muthoni has spent her career training, recruiting and helping elect candidates up and down the ballot. In addition to her wealth of experience, Muthoni brings a 50-state network with her to the DNC. Patrick has been an integral member of our team, and his leadership helped to revitalize our party’s grassroots fundraising. Brandon has already contributed significantly to our team and we’re excited to have him on board. Democrats nationwide will benefit from their talents as we continue to strengthen our party and work to elect Democrats in 2019, 2020, and beyond,” said DNC Chair Tom Perez.