O'Rourke Campaign Press Release - Beto for America Announces New Hampshire Leadership Team

Hires Come After Visits to 21 Communities in each of New Hampshire's Ten Counties, More Than 120 Questions Taken from Granite Staters at Events

MANCHESTER, NH — Beto for America announced its New Hampshire leadership team today, following O'Rourke's third visit to the Granite State earlier this month.

Since announcing his candidacy for president in March, Beto has visited all ten counties in the state, taking more than 120 questions from Granite Staters and holding events in Bedford, Claremont, Concord, Conway, Derry, Dover, Durham, Exeter, Gorham, Hanover, Hooksett, Keene, Laconia, Lebanon, Manchester, Nashua, New London, Plymouth, Portsmouth, Salem, and Somersworth.

"Beto is making a strong, early investment in New Hampshire to set the tone for our campaign and position himself to win the First in the Nation primary," said campaign manager Jen O'Malley Dillon. "This talented team, led by Mike Ollen, brings a diverse set of experiences to the table and will ensure Beto is able to continue showing up and competing in every single community across the state."

New Hampshire Leadership Team and Background:

Mike Ollen, State Director: Mike Ollen most recently served as State Director for the Office of United States Senator Maggie Hassan after working as Political Director on her successful 2016 campaign in one of the most competitive US Senate races in the country. Prior to joining then-Governor Hassan's campaign, Ollen worked on the political teams of Secretary Hillary Clinton and Senator Jeanne Shaheen, in the office of Congresswoman Annie Kuster, and on the organizing team for President Barack Obama's successful reelection campaign in New Hampshire.

Soham Pandit, Deputy State Director: Soham Pandit most recently served as Political Director for Chris Pappas in 2018, helping to navigate the campaign to victory in an 11-candidate primary in New Hampshire's First Congressional District before helping to deliver a decisive win in the general election. Prior to this, Pandit managed Pappas's successful Executive Council reelection campaign in 2016 and worked on the 2014 New Hampshire Democratic coordinated campaign. Before coming to New Hampshire, Pandit worked on the 2014 special election campaign for Alex Sink in Florida's 13th Congressional District, the 2013 special election campaign for U.S. Sen. Cory Booker in New Jersey, and on the campaign arm of the League of Conservation Voters during the 2012 general election cycle. Pandit became involved in political campaigns in 2010 as an organizer for former U.S. Congressman Patrick Murphy (PA-08), and subsequently served as Deputy Political Director for Murphy's primary bid for Pennsylvania Attorney General in 2012.

Anya Lehr, Operations Director: Anya Lehr most recently served as the first Director of Operations for VICE Asia Pacific in Singapore, assisting in setting up new offices and operations across the region. Prior to Singapore, she worked at VICE HQ in New York as Operations Manager for Digital and International teams. Before joining VICE in 2014, Anya worked in events and production. She's a native New Yorker and proud former GM of her college radio station.

Valerie Orellana, Scheduling Director: Valerie Orellana most recently served as the Program Coordinator of the Health Professions Program and an Assessment Coordinator in the Office of Residential Life at Dartmouth College, overseeing administrative systems and developing institution-wide programming events. She co-launched the Pathways to Medicine Scholars Program in 2018, an initiative for students to discuss and engage with topics of health inequity and health policy. She graduated from Dartmouth College with a degree in neuroscience and was an NCAA Division 1 swimmer.

Sydney Watnick, Organizing Director: Sydney Watnick most recently managed the Coordinated Campaign in North Carolina on behalf of Governor Roy Cooper's Break the Majority organization which flipped 15 seats and broke the supermajority in the state House and state Senate. Prior to North Carolina, she worked on campaigns in Virginia, Ohio, Iowa, and Massachusetts, for Hillary Clinton in Pennsylvania and South Carolina, and at Planned Parenthood on the national communications team. She returns to the Granite State after serving as an organizer for the New Hampshire Democratic Party's coordinated campaign in 2014 that successfully reelected Senator Jeanne Shaheen, Governor Maggie Hassan, and Congresswoman Annie Kuster.

Katherine Fischer, Regional Organizing Director: Katherine Fischer most recently managed the field operation in Houston for Beto's US Senate campaign in 2018. Starting the cycle as a volunteer, she ended the campaign running the organizing team in the largest city in Texas. Beto's grassroots organizing program was the largest in Texas and Harris County history. She has been a part of the Beto for America team since the start, helping to launch the distributed organizing program and continues to engage with supporters across the country.