Obama General Election Campaign Organization, Ohio

Obama General Election Campaign Organization, Ohio
revised April 14, 2009 disclaimer

Obama for America
June 25, 2008 memo

State Director

Aaron Pickrell

Campaign manager on the Strickland for Governor campaign in 2006. Chief operating officer at DCS Congressional. Political director on John Edwards' 2003-04 Iowa caucus campaign. Chief of staff to Rep. Leonard Boswell for two years prior to joining the campaign. Worked a stint at Kieloch Consulting in Washington, DC. Finance director for Vilsack/Pederson Inaugural Committee, 1999. Finance director/deputy campaign manager for Boswell's re-election campaign, 1997-98. Deputy director of operations for the Iowa Democratic Party, 1995-96. Field staff/office manager for Nagle for Congress in Waterloo, Jan.-May 1995. Graduate of Iowa State University, 1994.

Political Director

Rebecca Pearcey

Political director at the Ohio Democratic Party, March 2007-June 2008. Field director on Strickland for Governor, 2006. Deputy field director at Wal-Mart Watch, Jan. 2005-March 2006. Canvass director for ACT Florida, 2004. Regional field director on Rep. Dick Gephardt's Iowa caucus campaign in 2003-4. Administrative aide to Oregon State Sen. Margaret Carter. Graduate of Oregon State University with a degree in liberal studies, 2000 after transferring from Chemeketa Community College.

Communications Director

Isaac Baker

Clinton's communications director for the Ohio primary campaign; earlier served as a deputy press secretary in the national headquarters. Press secretary on Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland's 2006 gubernatorial campaign.

Deputy Communications Director

Tom Reynolds

In May 2008 Reynolds joined Qorvis Communications as a director. National press secretary on Bill Richardson's presidential campaign and earlier served as Iowa communications director for the campaign. Press secretary to Sen.Tom Harkin (D-IA). Communications director for Rep. Jane Harman (D-CA). Earlier, according to The Hill, he worked for a public-affairs firm in Southern California. Undergraduate degree from Boston University, and has completed most of the work towards Master’s degree in political management from The George Washington University.

New Media Director

Lucas Fleischer

New Media Co-Director

Michael Gottwald

(June 2008) Previously an intern at the Center for American Progress. Graduate of Wesleyan University, 2006.

Campaign for Change

General Election Director

Jeremy Bird

Previously, he served as the Obama campaign's South Carolina field director, Maryland state director and Pennsylvania field director. Field director for Wake-Up Wal-Mart. Deputy field director for training and GOTV at the DNC in Fall 2004 (started late July 2004 right before the Convention). Training director for Democratic GAIN. One of the two Congressional District directors on Howard Dean's 2003-04 New Hampshire presidential primary. Bachelor's degree from Wabash College in Crawfordsville, Indiana, 2000; Master's degree from Harvard Divinity School. Grew up in High Ridge, outside of St. Louis, Missouri.

Field Director

Jackie Bray

A deputy field director on Hillary Clinton's Ohio primary campaign; earlier served as a regional field director on Clinton's Iowa caucus campaign. One of 12 co-authors of How to Get Stupid White Men Out Of Office:The Anti-Politics, Unboring Guide to Power. B.A. in U.S. History from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, 2004. From Ridgewood, NJ.

Deputy Field Directors

Stephanie Speirs

Started on Obama's NH primary campaign, Rochester office. Graduate of Yale, 2007.

Brynne Craig

Worked on Hillary Clinton's Nevada caucus campaign. Attended the University of San Francisco, 2003-05 ; B.A. from Smith College, Program for the Study of Women and Gender, 2007.

Christopher Wyant

Graduate of Yale. "quit a finance job in New York to volunteer" starting in mid- 2007.

Kristin Garcia

Natasha Marsh

Worked on the Texas primary campaign in San Antonio.

Regional Organization

Regional Communications Director - Central & Southeast

Olivia Alair

Deputy press secretary to Sen. Joe Biden in his Senate office' started in Biden's office in Aug. 2006. Also helped in communications on Biden's Iowa caucus campaign. B.A. in government and history from Georgetown University.

Regional Communications Director - Northwest

Kamyl Bazbaz

Press assistant on Hillary Clinton's Iowa caucus campaign. Graduate of Brown University, 2007. From New York.

Regional Communications Director - Northeast

Keary McCarthy

In Fall 2006 McCarthy served as communications director for Ohioans for a Fair Minimum Wage. Partner at SVA Communications in Cleveland. Campaign manager for former Ohio State Rep. David Hartley, and press secretary for U.S. Senate candidate Marvin McMickle in 2000. M.S. in urban studies from Cleveland State University, Levin College of Urban Affairs.

Regional Communications Director - Southwest

Reggie Johnson

Deputy Political Director

Greg Schultz

Legislative liaison for Gov. Ted Strickland in the Department of Administrative Services. First vice president of Ohio Young Democrats. B.A. in history and political science from The Ohio State University, 2003; M.Ed from The Ohio State University 2004.

Constituency Director

Rick Barga

Deputy director of special projects at Ohio Department of Public Safety. Field organizer on John Kerry for President in IA, MD, WA, and WI and for Kerry-Edwards in Youngstown. Graduate of The Ohio State University, 2003. From Tiffin.

Rural Vote Director

Doug O’Brien

(announced July 16, 2008) Has served as assistant director of the Ohio Department of Agriculture and chaired the Ohio Agriculture to Chemicals, Polymers, and Advanced Materials Task Force, a body created by the state legislature and Gov. Ted Strickland. Senior advisor to Iowa Gov. Chet Culver (D) on renewable energy issues. Former counsel for the U.S. Senate Agriculture Committee and worked as a legal specialist in the U.S. Department of Agriculture during the Clinton Administration. Originally from Iowa. Barns for Obama

Director of Out-of-State Volunteers/Border State Program

Rosa Goldensohn

Policy Director

Jennifer Lynch

Executive policy assistant to Gov. Ted Strickland; took leave starting Aug. 28, 2008.

Tracker

Joe Hernandez

Voter File Director

Christine Campigotto

Student at the University of Denver, went to Iowa to work on the caucus campaign.

Scheduling Director

Natalie Wymer

Operations Director

Aubrey Cunningham

GOTV Director

Addisu Demissie

J.D. from Yale Law School, 2008. Executive assistant to DNC Chairmen Terry McAuliffe and Howard Dean. Managed the delegate selection process in the Mid-Atlantic Region for the Kerry/Edwards presidential campaign; field organizer for John Kerry's successful Iowa caucus campaign in 2003. Research director for the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, 2001-03. B.A. in political science from Yale College, 2001. Native of Windsor, Ontario, Canada.

Deputy GOTV Director

Michael Krouse

J.D. from Yale Law School, 2008. Project leader for Altai Consulting, and NGO, in Afghanistan. Policy analyst for the United Nations Development Project. Business analyst at McKinsey & Company, Sept. 2002-June 2004. Graduated from University of Pennsylvania, 2002.

Voter Protection Coordinators

Quentin Palfrey
James Cadogan
Michelle Mitchell

Ohio Democratic Party | 340 East Fulton St. | Columbus, Ohio 43215 614-221-6563 >

Chair

Chris Redfern

(elected chairman in Dec. 2005) Has served in the Ohio State House since 1999, including as Minority Leader from 2003 until early 2006. Previously served as Ottawa County Commissioner starting in 1993. Bachelor's and Master's degrees in state and local government from Bowling Green State University.

ADMINISTRATION

Executive Director

Doug Kelly

Prior to joining the ODP, Kelly served director of political affairs for the Mario Morino Family of Cleveland and special advisor at Venture Philanthropy Partners; joined the Morinos in June 2005. Previously Kelly spent 10 years at the DNC in Washington, DC including as technology director. Director of tax analysis at Citizens for Tax Justice (CTJ). He has authored numerous publications and studies, and provided the research for Paul Begala's 2000 book, Is Our Children Learning? Bachelor’s degree in government from Harvard University. Native of Adrian, Michigan.

Chairman's Assistant

Pratima Raju

Director of Operations

David Duffey

Information Technology Director

Matt Swellie

Administrative Assistant

Miranda Neighbors

COMMUNICATIONS

Communications Director

Alex Goepfert

Communications director on Gov. Bill Richardson's NH primary campaign. Spokesman for Ohio Attorney General Marc Dann. In 2006 Goepfert managed Molly Kelly's State Senate campaign victory over incumbent Tom Eaton in Keene. Served as press secretary for two statewide campaigns in Ohio (attorney Eric Fingerhut's 2004 challenge to U.S. Sen. George Voinovich). He has also worked in television journalism as an assignment editor in the Columbus media market. Graduate of The Ohio State University.

Director of Internet Operations

Todd Hoffmann

Research Director

Christina Heckart

Communications Coordinator

Ron Bryant

FINANCE

Finance Director

Matthew JM Pelikan

Deputy Finance Director

Eryn Campbell

Finance Assistant

Bridgette Tupes

Finance Assistant

Ruth Zeager

POLITICAL

Deputy Political Director

Carri Twigg

VOTER PROTECTION

Director of Voter Protection

Dora Rose

FIELD

Targeting and Field Director

John Hagner

Regional Field Directors
Franklin County - Jennifer Dillard
Mahoning Valley - Lyndsey Hughes
Southwest Ohio - Steve Wolfe
Cuyahoga County - Matt Slain
Northeast Ohio - Megan Joyce
Southeast Ohio Leilani Bonnell
Cleveland - Stephanie Howse

Outreach Directors
Women's - Liz Shirey
Ethnic - Omar Humadi
LGBT - James Winnett
Asian-American Caucus Director - Preet Jesrani
Veterans and Family Members Caucus Director - William Rausch

Obama primary
2004 Kerry
See also: Melanie J. Blumberg, William C. Binning and John C. Green. "The [Un]coordinated Campaign in 2004:The Mahoning County Democratic Party, Kerry Freelancers, 527 Committees, and Organized Labor." Paper prepared for presentation at The State of the Parties: 2000 & Beyond conference, Crown Plaza Quaker Square, Akron, Ohio, October 5-7, 2005. Sponsored by The Ray C. Bliss Institute of Applied Politics at The University of Akron.