Bernie Sanders Announces Staff Hires at Iowa Statewide Headquarters Opening Today

Sanders Hosts Iowa HQ Open House
 
DES MOINES – U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders on Saturday welcomed Iowans to an open house at his new statewide campaign headquarters here, the first of many offices he will open throughout Iowa.

“I really do appreciate the kind of support we’re getting here in Iowa,” he told about 50 volunteers and supporters at the headquarters. “We are going to build a major organization here.”

Pete D’Alesandro, Sanders’ Iowa campaign director, echoed the point. “Sen. Sanders understands that a grassroots campaign must be where the grassroots are. This is just the first of many offices we will be opening around the state,” he said.

Iowa is the first place where Sanders has opened a state headquarters. “Iowa's a very important state to us. We're going to be competing here very aggressively,” said Jeff Weaver, Sanders’ national campaign manager.

The growing Iowa campaign staff includes Blair Lawton, the political director; Justin Huck, the state field director; Tara Thobe, the state operations director; and Evan Burger, the college outreach director. “We also are having great success in bringing on the type of regional grassroots field staff Iowans expect,” D’Alesandro added. “We will have even more announcements in terms of additional staff very soon.”

In addition to responding to swarms of volunteers looking for ways to help, Sanders’ Iowa team has organized a string of standing-room-only appearance by the senator throughout Iowa. Another overflow crowd showed up at a town meeting in Des Moines on Friday. The 777-seat auditorium at Drake University was filled to capacity and people lined the walls to hear Sanders.

Saturday’s headquarters open house was part of a three-day Sanders swing through the Hawkeye State.