SEATTLE—Washington State Democrats Chair, Shasti Conrad, announces her candidacy for Vice Chair of the Democrat National Committee (DNC), which is responsible for articulating and promoting the Democratic platform and coordinating party organizational activity. Conrad was the first woman of color and youngest person to be elected Chair of the Washington State Democrats as well as the first South Asian and first Indian American woman to serve as a State Democratic Party Chair in the country.
“I believe in the power of partnership. Our policies are popular,” said Conrad. “Our values are American values. Together, let’s lead our party out of the wilderness and start improving the lives of all Americans again.”
She is currently the Vice President for the ASDC Western Region, was named as one of the “40 Under 40” by the American Association of Political Consultants, and one of the most influential people in Seattle Politics by Seattle Met Magazine.
As Chair, Conrad raised nearly $9 millionin her first 2-year term which she attributes to her year-round communications and field organizing that helped Washington Democrats win up and down the ballot.
“I’m going to continue fighting for these values as DNC Vice Chair and make sure that our party doesn’t throw under the bus any of the beautiful communities that make up our diverse big tent,” said Conrad.
With a Master of Public Administration from Princeton University and her Bachelor of Arts from Seattle University, Conrad stated she is running because the DNC needs a new generation of leadership and believes that Washington state is the political blueprint to turn the rest of the country blue.
“As the rest of the nation saw an average shift of 6% towards Donald Trump,” Conrad explained, “Washington state held the line, functionally stopping any rightward shift among its electorate. We delivered the strongest Democratic performance in all 50 states. In fact, Democrats won every statewide office, and, for the fifth straight campaign cycle, Democrats added seats in the state legislature.”
Conrad compared Washington’s 2024 General Election performance to other states as evidence that her strategy of Transparency, Trust & Respect, Investment, Innovation, and Economic Populism will resonate nationally.
Oregon, with similar demographics and values as Washington state, shifted 2 points towards President-elect Donald J Trump. States like Massachusetts and Vermont, which are whiter and more highly educated than Washington’s electorate, she shared, still moved 8 and 3 points, respectively, towards the Republican ticket.
“In a sea of red, Washington Democrats (WA Dems) bucked the national trend,” said Conrad.
Under her leadership as DNC Vice Chair, she will fight to invest in state parties and caucuses, and empower them to run effective, year-round programs.
“For too long, the DNC has given meager ‘allowances’ to state parties and caucuses,” Conrad said. “We have to rethink this approach completely.”
She aims to prioritize long-form, unscripted conversations with content creators on every platform to breakout of the “traditional media” which she says the Republican Party used strategically to come across more “trustworthy and authentic.”
The election of a new chair of the DNC, along with other top leadership positions— Vice Chairperson for Civic Engagement and Voter Participation, and the three other Vice Chairpersons, Treasurer, Secretary, and National Finance Chair—will be February 1, 2025, at the party’s winter meeting in National Harbor, Maryland.
Democrats suffered major losses up and down the ballot in the 2024 elections as Trump recaptured the White House and Republicans flipped the Senate and held onto its majority in the House.
Conrad along with other candidates have just six weeks to make their case to the body’s 448 members, as to why they are the best to lead a new ear of Democrats.
Other candidates running for Vice Chair of the DNC are David Hogg, who survived the 2018 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida; Joe Barbuto, chair of the Wyoming Democratic party; and James Zogby, a pro-Palestinian advocate and an existing member of the DNC.
Current DNC chair Jaime Harrison is not seeking another four-year term. Current contenders for his replacement are Ken Martin, chairman of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor (DFL) Party; former Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley; New York state Senator James Skoufis; Wisconsin Democratic Party Chair Ben Wikler; and former Department of Homeland Security staffer Nate Snyder.
To endorse Shasti Conrad for DNC Vice Chair, click here. To learn more about Conrad’s vision, and story, visit https://shasticonrad.com.
Author: Mario Lotmore
