Rep. Ilhan Omar Announces Campaign Staff for 2024 Election
|MINNEAPOLIS—Rep. Ilhan Omar (MN-05) announced her campaign team for her re-election to the United States House of Representatives today. In 2022, Rep. Omar won the 5th District general election with over 74% of the vote and over 214,000 votes.
In her three terms in the U.S. House of Representatives, Congresswoman Omar has built a strong record of meaningful legislative accomplishments and delivering for the people of Minnesota’s Fifth Congressional District. She’s garnered praise for her accessibility to her constituents through monthly town halls, hundreds of local events, and exemplary constituent services.
“I am honored to serve Minnesota’s Fifth District in Congress and I am excited for the opportunity to earn my constituents’ vote for a fourth term,” said Rep. Omar. “Since being elected to Congress, I am proud of the work I have done to defend and advocate for women’s rights, address the climate crisis, center human rights in our foreign policy, and protect our democracy and voting rights. My team has helped thousands of constituents restore Social Security benefits, expedite passports, reunite families, restore health insurance, and so much more.
“But the work is not over. All of the issues and rights my constituents and I care about most are under attack, and I will not back down in protecting them. I am an organizer who believes that organized people will always beat organized money, and I am excited to announce a talented and experienced team that will lead our organizing efforts this year.”
Kendra Lee – Campaign Manager – is a native Memphian who graduated from Spelman College with her Bachelors in Psychology and Juris Doctorate from the University of Dayton School of Law. Throughout her law school career Kendra grew an admiration for public policy and community engagement. Her campaign experience includes Voter Protection Director, Regional and Statewide for the Tennessee Democratic Party, Community Organizer for Warren for President, and Training Manager for Jon Ossoff for U.S. Senate Runoff. In 2021, Kendra joined The Equity Alliance, a black woman led and founded social justice organization, as Policy Manager. Additionally, Kendra was appointed as Shelby County Election Commissioner. As part of the Blue Leadership Collaborative 2022 Cohort, Kendra managed Taylor Kerby for Arizona State Senate.
Brayden Sorenson – Organizing Director – served most recently as Campaign Manager for Mitra Jalali, the new president of the Saint Paul City Council. He also helped coordinate the races of the six other women who won. In addition, Brayden served as Organizing Director for Attorney General Keith Ellison’s statewide victory over a well-funded republican challenger. Before that, he served as Youth Outreach Coordinator for Tina Smith for Minnesota.
Makenzie Richardson – Finance Director – is an award-winning, record-breaking, multi-million dollar campaign fundraiser, with nearly a decade of experience and expertise. Recognized for her commitment to excellence and passion for coalition building, Makenzie has held pivotal roles such as Chief of Staff for Stacey Abrams’ Finance Operations and DNC Regional Deputy Finance Director. Notably, she led the national fundraising efforts for the historic 2020 campaign between Jaime Harrison and Lindsey Graham, achieving the highest Senate campaign funds raised in US history.
Andrew Virden – Political Director – has worked on campaigns for Barack Obama, Keith Ellison, Bernie Sanders, as well as the DFL House caucus and state party. He is known as the pioneer behind Keith Ellison’s apartment program in 2012. More recently, he was the Director of Census Operations for the State of Minnesota where his work was critical in saving Minnesota’s 8th congressional seat in Congress.
Briana Rose Lee – Operations Director – started as a canvasser for Team Ilhan and later worked as the Volunteer Coordinator in Omar’s previous campaigns. She is a union film production coordinator, stage manager, and actor and recently served as Chair of the Minneapolis DFL.
Ilhan for Congress has also brought on Matt Burgess of The New Media Firm to advise on paid media strategy, Joshua Ulibarri of Lake Research Partners to lead polling and research, and Barry Klein of Kinetic Campaigns to advise on the campaign mail program.