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Steve Bullock presidential campaign staff, 2020
Date: November 3, 2020 |
 Donald Trump Joe Biden Howie Hawkins Jo Jorgensen
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Last updated November 13, 2019.
This page contains a select list of Steve Bullock's national campaign staff and primary state directors. Staff are presented alongside their positions in the campaign, their most recent positions prior to the campaign, and their Twitter handles.
Click on the links below to navigate:
- Campaign staff in context
- Overview of Bullock's campaign
- National and state staff
- Bullock in the news
Know of any staff we missed? Please email us at editor@ballotpedia.org.
Visit Presidential election key staffers, 2020, to see our coverage of staff on other campaigns.
Here are links to the candidates' staff pages:
- Donald Trump (R)
- Joe Biden (D)
- Jo Jorgensen (L)
- Howie Hawkins (G)
Campaign staff in context
Campaign staff plays an important role in the presidential primaries. The makeup of a candidate's staff can signal the strength of their support from influential party activists and whether they are aligning with a particular faction or group within the party. Eric Appleman of Democracy in Action describes candidates' efforts to hire staffers as a "race for talent, both nationally and in key early states." He adds, "The goal is to assemble a team of top talent that can work together effectively to mobilize resources, boost the candidate and his or her message, and ultimately secure the party's nomination."[1]
Presidential candidates will typically have a national staff, which is overseen by a campaign manager and assisted by political consultants, senior advisors, professional polling firms, and key stakeholders such as interest group leaders and major financial supporters. They also build organizations in individual states that are overseen by state directors and staffed by party activists and political professionals well-versed in the particular politics of the area. Candidates often appoint elected officials and other important figures in their party's coalition as chairs of their national campaign and state-level campaigns.[1]
Bullock campaign overview
Steve Bullock is the Democratic governor of Montana. After Montana's 2019 state legislative session ended, Bullock announced that he was running for president of the United States on May 14, 2019. He suspended his presidential campaign on December 2, 2019.[2]
His announcement video focused on his work on campaign finance law and his efforts to collaborate with both Democrats and Republicans during his time as governor.[3][4]
"I’m running for president to beat Donald Trump, win back the places we lost and make sure that Americans know that where Washington’s left them behind in their economy and their political system, I’ll be there," Bullock said during the second Democratic primary debate.[5]
National staff
The table below shows a sampling of the candidate's 2020 national campaign staff members, including the campaign manager and some senior advisors, political directors, communication directors, and field directors. It also includes each staff member's position in the campaign, previous work experience, and Twitter handle, where available.[6] For a larger list of national campaign staff, visit Democracy in Action.
| Steve Bullock presidential campaign national staff, 2020 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Staff | Position | Prior experience | Twitter handle |
| Jenn Ridder | Campaign manager | Mountain West regional political director, Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee | N/A |
| Nick Baldick | Senior advisor | Founder and managing partner, Hilltop Public Solutions | N/A |
| Galia Slayen | Communications director | Communications director, J.B. Pritzker for Governor of Illinois, 2018 | @gslayen |
| Sharon Páez | Senior political adviser | Partner, Hilltop Public Solutions | N/A |
| Maura Hagerty Matthews | Finance director | National finance consultant, Big Sky Values PAC | N/A |
State staff
The table below shows the candidate's 2020 early primary state directors and state communications directors. It also includes each staff member's position in the campaign, previous work experience, and Twitter handle, where available.[6] For a larger list of state campaign staff, visit Democracy in Action.
| Steve Bullock presidential campaign state staff, 2020 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Staff | State | Position | Prior experience | Twitter handle |
| Megan Simpson | Iowa | State director | Coordinated director, Montana Democratic Party | @MegSimps |
| Jeremy Busch | Iowa | Communications director | Press secretary, Rita Hart for Lieutenant Governor of Iowa, 2018 | @JeremyCBusch |
| Nick Baldick | New Hampshire | Acting state director | Founder and managing partner, Hilltop Public Solutions | N/A |
Notable staff departures
The list below shows notable staff departures found in media reports.
| Steve Bullock presidential campaign staff, 2020 (Departures) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Staff | Previous position | Departure date | New position |
| Rich Thuma | New Hampshire state director | September 2019 | Campaign manager, Joe Kennedy III for U.S. Senate, 2020 |
Bullock in the news
- See also: Ballotpedia's Daily Presidential News Briefing and Editorial approach to story selection for the Daily Presidential News Briefing
This section featured five news stories about Bullock and his presidential campaign. For a complete timeline of Bullock's campaign activity, click here.
- December 2, 2019: Bullock ended his presidential campaign. “While there were many obstacles we could not have anticipated when entering into this race, it has become clear that in this moment, I won’t be able to break through to the top tier of this still-crowded field of candidates,” he said in a statement. Bullock said he would not run for the U.S. Senate in Montana.
- November 21-24, 2019: The Senate Leadership Fund launched a five-figure ad campaign against Bullock in Montana, criticizing him for his campaign travel and gun policy. Bullock also visited southwest and central Iowa.
- November 20, 2019: Bullock aired an ad on prosecutorial authority in Iowa markets during the fifth Democratic primary debate.
- November 19, 2019: Bullock spoke about his campaign during a local interview in Boston.
- November 19, 2019: Bullock aired an ad in Iowa on prosecutorial authority “to follow the evidence all the way to the top,” including cases involving sitting presidents.
See also
- Presidential election key staffers, 2020
- Presidential candidates, 2020
- Democratic presidential nomination, 2020
- Republican presidential nomination, 2020
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Democracy in Action, "Building Campaign Organizations (2019)," accessed May 10, 2019
- ↑ Medium, "Steve Bullock: Thank You," December 2, 2019
- ↑ Vox, "Steve Bullock, the Democratic governor of Montana, is running for president," Jun 26, 2019
- ↑ YouTube, "Steve Bullock: Fair Shot," May 14, 2019
- ↑ Rev, "Transcript of July Democratic Debate 2nd Round Night 1: Full Transcript," July 30, 2019
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Democracy in Action, "Organization," accessed November 4, 2019
