Addisu Demissie
Template:TOCnestleft Addisu Demissie – is Vice President and Director of Grassroots Advocacy. He is a graduate of Yale University and Yale Law School, and a member of the state Bar of California.[1]
He lives in Oakland, CA with his wife Jill Habig.[2]
Education
- Yale Law School, 2005 – 2008
- Yale University, B.A. Political Science 1997 – 2001[3]
Newsom campaign manager
In 2018 Addisu Demissie was Campaign Manager at Gavin Newsom for Governor.
Higher Ground Labs
Addisu Demissie is currently serving as advisory board member of Higher Ground Labs.
Career
- Political Consultant, 50+1 Strategies, Feb 2011 – Present
- The Messina Group, Vice President and Director of Grassroots Advocacy, Feb 2014 – Feb 2017
- Hillary for America, National Voter Outreach and Mobilization Director, Mar 2016 – Nov 2016
- Cory Booker for Senate, Campaign Manager, May 2013 – Dec 2013, Newark, New Jersey
- Chicago for Rahm Emanuel, Field Director, Oct 2010 – Feb 2011
- Google, Policy Counsel, May 2010 – Oct 2010
- Democratic National Committee, Political Director, Organizing for America, Feb 2009 – May 2010
- Obama for America, Ohio Get Out The Vote Director[4]
Political career
Addisu Demissie has over a decade’s worth of professional experience in politics, with expertise in campaign management and strategy, political communications, and grassroots field operations. He has led campaigns at the national, state, and local level for electoral, nonprofit, and corporate clients.
Since 2011, Addisu served as Principal for 50+1 Strategies, a San Francisco-based political consulting group that he co-founded. In that role, he served as Campaign Manager for Senator Cory Booker’s (D-NJ) successful special election campaign in 2013, general consultant for several California municipal, initiative and independent expenditure campaigns during the 2012 campaign cycle, and as Communications Director for President of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors David Chiu’s campaign for Mayor.
Addisu’s first love is developing and implementing sophisticated organizing campaigns. He served in statewide field management roles for John Kerry for President in 2004 and Hillary Clinton for President in the 2007 and 2008 presidential primaries, and as the Get Out The Vote Director for President Obama in the battleground state of Ohio in the 2008 general election campaign. Following the President’s first inaugural in 2009, he was selected as the first National Political Director for Organizing for America and was named one of the “Ten Young Black Aides To Watch” in the Obama Administration by the Washington Post. At OFA, Demissie played a key role in mobilizing and coordinating grassroots support for the passage of the the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, federal student loan reform, and Affordable Care Act. Later that year, Demissie went on to serve as Field Director for Rahm Emanuel’s successful mayoral campaign in Chicago.
Steve Phillips
Addisu Demissie with Steve Phillips.
Inclusv
Inclusv Advisory Board members, as of May 12, 2018 included Addisu Demissie.
Democratic Party chair
One person on Steve Phillips’ short list to be a party chair is an Oakland resident: Addisu Demissie, who was the campaign manager for New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker’s successful campaign.