MLTers in Politics Series – Brandon Lewis

Brandon Lewis, Career Prep 2012

We are excited to share our MLTers in Politics blog series. Our goal is to highlight MLT Fellows and Alumni working in grassroots organizing, advocacy, government roles and politics. Through these interviews, MLTers shared with us what sparked their interest in working in politics, what it means to work in politics in today’s environment and biggest takeaways from working in the sector.

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Brandon Lewis, Career Prep 2012 Alum, is the second in our series. Brandon is the current Regional Organizing Director for the Florida Democratic party on Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign. He spoke with us about what prompted him to get involved in working on the campaign, his experience as a Field Organizer and how he has gained leadership skills throughout the process.

What made you want to get involved in working in politics?

I have always wanted to work on a presidential campaign. When my grandparents were born in Alabama, they didn’t have the right to vote, so they often tell me stories about what it was like growing up in the deep south without many rights and the struggle it was to get those rights. They went from living in a time where they had no voting rights, to living in a time where they can vote for a presidential candidate that looks just like them!

What is your role on  Hillary Clinton’s campaign?

I work in the field department in Florida as a Regional Organizing Director. I have the unique opportunity to be on the ground everyday talking to voters. Prior to Florida, I worked for Hillary in Columbia, South Carolina for seven months where I was able to build a volunteer team, recruit, manage and train high school students and was also able to build relationships with local African American business owners throughout South Carolina.

How is working as a Field Organizer in Florida unique from the other states?

The thing with Florida, as compared to other states, is that it really does represent the diversity of America.

I often hear people say “Organizing Florida is like attempting to organize the United Nations.” That is because you are dealing with people from all over the world with different backgrounds, with all different sets of experiences and you are getting them focused on this one singular vision, which is electing a democrat in November. That’s just not something you see in other states.

Our level of diversity is unique and that means that we have to have a diverse staff that represents the state of Florida. We have to have people that can target different communities and understand those communities and their needs. So that is always a challenge in Florida, but it is an exciting opportunity

How do you feel data and social media have transformed campaigns?

I think both President Obama’s campaigns really transformed the way candidates interact with voters. He had a very strong social media presence and that is why he was able to engage what we call “The Obama Coalition”. I think that our campaign is implementing many of the same things. We are very active in social media and we are very data driven. The president’s campaign really transformed the way people use data to target who you’re going to talk to, what you’re going to talk to them about and what you’re going to ask them to do; which is all in the effort to get more people registered and more people out to the polls.

Do you think your experience working in politics has positioned you to be in a leadership position?

Definitely. I, at a very young age, am managing a very large team. The management experience that I am getting is preparing me for future leadership because I now know how to coach people, how to train people, how to delegate, how to push people to be their very best and to perform at their very best. I also know how to take people who underperform and get them to a level where they need to be.

What do you want to do after the campaign?

That is a great question. I am so committed to this campaign, I haven’t even thought past it. I would love to go back and be in the classroom again and I am also interested in working on another campaign.

 

To see other blogs featured in this series click here.