Jen O'Malley Dillon

Last updated

Jen O'Malley Dillon
Deputy Chief of Staff Jennifer (Jen) O'Malley Dillon in the White House Oval Office on May 1, 2023 (cropped).jpg
O'Malley Dillon in the White House Oval Office in 2023
White House Deputy Chief of Staff
In office
January 20, 2021 –February 8, 2024
Servingwith Bruce Reed and Natalie Quillian

Jennifer Brigid O'Malley Dillon (born September 28, 1976) [1] is an American political strategist who served as the campaign chair for Vice President Kamala Harris's 2024 presidential campaign. [2] She held the same position with President Joe Biden's 2024 reelection campaign. [3]

Contents

O'Malley Dillon served as White House deputy chief of staff for the first three years of Biden's presidency, after managing his 2020 presidential campaign. She is the first female campaign manager for a successful Democratic presidential ticket. [4] In 2019, she managed Beto O'Rourke's presidential campaign until its suspension in November of that year. [5]

Early life and education

O'Malley Dillon's great-grandparents were Irish Catholic immigrants from Gorumna Island, County Galway. [6] [ dead link ‍] [7] Born in the Jamaica Plain neighborhood of Boston, she has three siblings. Her parents are Kevin O'Malley, a school administrator, and Kathleen O'Malley. [8] When O'Malley Dillon was a child the family relocated from Jamaica Plain to Franklin, Massachusetts, to be closer to her father's job. [8]

O'Malley Dillon graduated from Franklin High School in Franklin, Massachusetts. [9] In 1998 she graduated with a bachelor's degree from Tufts University, where she majored in political science and captained the softball team. [8] [10] [11] O'Malley Dillon decided she wanted to work in politics while on a family vacation to Washington, D.C. [8]

Career

O'Malley Dillon's first role in politics was answering phones for Massachusetts attorney general Scott Harshbarger. She joined Al Gore's 2000 presidential campaign as a field organizer in 1999 and rose to become a regional field director by the end of the campaign. She worked as a field director for the U.S. Senate campaigns of Tim Johnson and Mary Landrieu. In 2003, she worked as Iowa field director for John Edwards's 2004 presidential campaign, and, after Edwards left the race, became deputy campaign manager for Senator Tom Daschle's reelection campaign. [10] [11]

In 2007, O'Malley Dillon again went to work for John Edwards on his 2008 presidential campaign as his Iowa state director and later deputy campaign manager. After Edwards was again eliminated, she joined Barack Obama's presidential campaign for the general election as battleground states director. After Obama's election, she worked on the presidential transition as associate director of personnel, and then was hired as the executive director of the Democratic National Committee under Tim Kaine. [10] [11]

In 2011, O'Malley Dillon joined Obama's 2012 reelection campaign as deputy campaign manager, contributing to Project Narwhal. [12] After Obama's reelection, she co-founded the political consulting firm Precision Strategies with fellow Obama campaign alumni Stephanie Cutter and Teddy Goff. She led Precision's consulting effort for the Liberal Party of Canada in the 2015 Canadian federal election. [10] [11]

After the 2016 United States presidential election, O'Malley Dillon chaired the Democratic National Committee's Unity Reform Commission. In 2019, she was involved in an effort by Democratic Party data and political personnel to create a data exchange to allow for greater information sharing between Democratic campaigns and allies, a project that party leaders see as crucial for catching up with the Republican data program. [13] Later in 2019, she was hired as manager of Beto O'Rourke's 2020 presidential campaign. [10] [11] [14]

Through Precision, O'Malley Dillon also advised Gates Ventures, a venture capital firm founded by Bill Gates; the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, founded by Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan; General Electric; and Lyft; her deferred compensation and severance from Precision was at least $420,000. [15]

Jen O'Malley Dillon in 2021 Jen O'Malley Dillon (51478518857) (cropped).jpg
Jen O'Malley Dillon in 2021

In April 2020, O'Malley Dillon was announced as the new manager for Biden's 2020 presidential campaign. She succeeded Greg Schultz and Anita Dunn, who had shared campaign management duties for the previous month and remained with the campaign as senior advisors. [13] O'Malley Dillon was the first person to serve as Biden's campaign manager who was not related to him. Biden's sister, Valerie Biden Owens, had served as Biden's campaign manager for all his previous campaigns, but only served in a senior advisory role in his 2020 presidential campaign. [16] On November 16, 2020, it was announced that O'Malley Dillon would assume the role of White House deputy chief of staff in the administration. [17] [18]

In January 2024, it was reported that O'Malley Dillon planned to leave the White House to become Biden's 2024 reelection campaign chair. [19]

On July 1, 2024, in response to worries about Biden's performance in his June 27 presidential debate with Donald Trump, O'Malley Dillon told members of the Biden campaign's National Finance Committee that he was "probably in better health than most of us". [20]

On July 22, 2024, the day after Biden announced that he was ending his 2024 presidential run, Vice President Kamala Harris announced to campaign staff that O'Malley Dillon would manage her campaign for president. [2] Harris lost the general election to Trump. [21]

Personal life

O'Malley Dillon is married to Patrick Dillon. They have three children. Her second cousin, Matt O'Malley, served on the Boston City Council from 2010 to 2022, and served as its acting president for most of 2021. [8]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stephanie Cutter</span> American lawyer and political consultant

Stephanie Cutter is an American political consultant. She served as an advisor to President Barack Obama during his first presidential term, and was deputy campaign manager for his 2012 re-election campaign. She previously worked in campaign and communications roles for other prominent Democrats including Ted Kennedy, John Kerry, and Michelle Obama. The New York Times described her as "a popular but polarizing face of [Obama's] campaign", and a "soldier who says the things the candidate can't say."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bruce Reed (political operative)</span> American political advisor (born 1960)

Bruce Reed is an American political advisor and non-profit administrator who was the president of the Broad Foundation. Prior to assuming that role in December 2013, he served as Chief of Staff to U.S. Vice President Joe Biden and as CEO of the Democratic Leadership Council (DLC). On December 22, 2020, it was announced that Reed would serve as a White House deputy chief of staff in the Biden administration, along with Jen O'Malley Dillon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anita Dunn</span> American political strategist (born 1958)

Anita Dunn is an American political strategist who served as a senior advisor to U.S. President Joe Biden, holding the post from January 20, 2021, to August 12, 2021, and again from May 5, 2022 to August 2024. She is currently serving as a senior adviser to the Future Forward PAC.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jen Psaki</span> American political advisor (born 1978)

Jennifer Rene Psaki is an American television political analyst and former government official. A political advisor who served under both the Obama and Biden administrations, she served the Biden administration as the 34th White House press secretary until May 2022. A member of the Democratic Party, she previously served in the Obama administration as the White House deputy press secretary (2009); the White House deputy communications director (2009–2011); the spokesperson for the United States Department of State (2013–2015); and the White House communications director (2015–2017). Psaki was a political contributor for CNN from 2017 to 2020. As of March 2023, she hosts the talk-show Inside with Jen Psaki on MSNBC.

On April 4, 2011, Barack Obama, the 44th president of the United States, announced his candidacy for re-election as president. On September 5, 2012, he again became the nominee of the Democratic Party for the 2012 presidential election. Along with his running mate, Vice President Joe Biden, Obama was opposed in the general election by former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, along with various minor candidates from other parties. The election took place on Tuesday, November 6, 2012.

Chip Forrester is an American political operative, prolific Democratic fundraiser, and former chair of the Tennessee Democratic Party. He served on the Tennessee Democratic Party's Executive Committee from 1988 until 2009 when he was elected chairman. He is the son of United States Army Lieutenant General Eugene Forrester.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rufus Gifford</span> American diplomat (born 1974)

John Rufus Gifford is an American politician, and diplomat, who has served as Finance Chair of the Harris 2024 presidential campaign since July 2024. He was the chief of protocol of the United States from 2022 to 2023. Between 2013 and 2017, he was the United States Ambassador to Denmark.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shefali Razdan Duggal</span> American activist and diplomat (born 1971)

Shefali Razdan Duggal is an Indian-American political activist and diplomat serving as the United States ambassador to the Netherlands. She was previously appointed by President Barack Obama to the United States Holocaust Memorial Council, which supervises the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, for a term which expired in January 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Karine Jean-Pierre</span> American political advisor and White House Press Secretary (born 1974)

Karine Jean-Pierre is an American political advisor who has been serving as the White House press secretary since May 13, 2022, and a senior advisor to President Joe Biden since October 7, 2024. She is the first black person and the first openly LGBTQ person to serve in the position of White House press secretary. Previously, she served as the deputy press secretary to her predecessor Jen Psaki from 2021 to 2022 and as the chief of staff for U.S. Vice Presidential candidate Kamala Harris during the 2020 presidential campaign.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beto O'Rourke 2020 presidential campaign</span> American political campaign

The 2020 presidential campaign of Beto O'Rourke, the U.S. representative for Texas's 16th congressional district from 2013 to 2019, was announced on March 14, 2019. Beto O'Rourke had previously attracted national attention for his unsuccessful campaign against Ted Cruz in the 2018 Senate election in Texas.

This is a list of endorsements for declared candidates in the Democratic primaries for the 2020 United States presidential election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2022 Texas gubernatorial election</span>

The 2022 Texas gubernatorial election took place on November 8, 2022, to elect the governor of Texas. Incumbent Republican Governor Greg Abbott won re-election to a third term, defeating the Democratic nominee, former Congressman Beto O'Rourke. All statewide elected offices are currently held by Republicans. In his previous gubernatorial race in 2018, Abbott won with 55.8% of the vote.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Julie Chávez Rodriguez</span> American activist (born 1978)

Julie Chávez Rodriguez is an American political rights activist and was the campaign manager for Vice President Kamala Harris's 2024 presidential campaign, transitioning to that role from President Joe Biden's 2024 re-election campaign.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Presidential transition of Joe Biden</span> Transfer of presidential power from Donald Trump to Joe Biden

The presidential transition of Joe Biden began on November 7, 2020, and ended on January 20, 2021. Unlike previous presidential transitions, which normally take place during the roughly 10-week period between the election in the first week of November and the inauguration on January 20, Biden's presidential transition was shortened somewhat because the General Services Administration under the outgoing first Trump administration did not recognize Biden as the "apparent winner" until November 23.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kate Bedingfield</span> American political advisor (born 1981)

Katherine Joan Bedingfield is an American political advisor who served as the White House Communications Director in the Biden administration from 2021 to 2023. She previously served as deputy campaign manager for the Joe Biden 2020 presidential campaign and as communications director for Biden when he was vice president in the Obama administration.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ashley Etienne</span> Haitian American political advisor (born 1978)

Ashley Danielle Etienne is an American political advisor who served as the communications director for Vice President Kamala Harris. She is the former communications director and senior advisor to Nancy Pelosi, the first woman and person of color to hold the position of Communications Director for the House Speaker. She was also a former special assistant to Barack Obama.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yohannes Abraham</span> American government official and diplomat

Yohannes Abraham is an American government official who served as United States Representative to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations from 2022 to 2024. He was selected to lead the planned presidential transition for Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris and resigned from the State Department to take up his new job in August 2024.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zayn Siddique</span> American lawyer and political advisor

Zayn Siddique is an American attorney and political advisor serving as the Principal Deputy Director of the Domestic Policy Council. From 2021 to 2022, he was Senior Advisor to Bruce Reed, the White House Deputy Chief of Staff under President Joe Biden.

Megan Krausman Jones is an American political strategist serving as a senior advisor to Vice President Kamala Harris's 2024 presidential campaign. Previously, Jones served in the Biden-Harris White House and as a longtime political advisor to former US Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.

References

  1. ↑ Jen O'Malley Dillon [@jomalleydillon] (September 28, 2018). "For my birthday I'm honoring women by giving them money. Here's my list so far-Will take requests" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  2. 1 2 "Live Updates: Harris breaks donation record, claims most of the delegates she needs for the nomination". Associated Press. July 22, 2024.
  3. ↑ Epstein, Reid J. (January 23, 2024). "Two Top Biden Aides Are Taking the Reins of His Re-election Campaign". The New York Times .
  4. ↑ Smith, Chris (November 7, 2020). ""She Is a Master": Joe Biden's Campaign Manager Told the Political Future—And Was Right". Vanity Fair . Retrieved November 8, 2020.
  5. ↑ Bradner, Eric (November 1, 2019). "Beto O'Rourke ends 2020 presidential bid". CNN . Retrieved August 6, 2024.
  6. ↑ "O'Malley / Conneely Family History".
  7. ↑ Weaver, Courtney (November 20, 2020). "History maker: how Jen O'Malley Dillon steered Joe Biden's run to the White House". The Irish Times . Retrieved November 20, 2020.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 King, Alison (November 16, 2020). "Who Is Mass. Native Jennifer O'Malley Dillon? Meet Biden's New Deputy Chief of Staff". NBC Boston. Retrieved November 17, 2020.
  9. ↑ Peterson, Stephen (November 8, 2020). "Franklin native helps Biden to White House". The Sun Chronicle.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 "Beto for America" . Retrieved March 12, 2020.
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 "Jen O'Malley Dillon". Precision Strategies. Retrieved March 12, 2020.
  12. ↑ Christmas, Stuart A. (June 10, 2014). "Vice President for Legal Investigations letter complaining of violations of the FEC Act by Obama for America, etc. [Letter written January 8, 2014, to Office of General Counsel, Federal Election Commission]" (PDF). Federal Elections Commission . Retrieved November 17, 2020.
  13. 1 2 Scherer, Michael (March 12, 2020). "Joe Biden appoints Jen O'Malley Dillon as new campaign manager". The Washington Post . Retrieved March 12, 2020.
  14. ↑ Svitek, Patrick (March 25, 2016). "Beto O'Rourke hires former top Obama aide as campaign manager". The Texas Tribune . Retrieved March 26, 2019.
  15. ↑ Schwartz, Brian (March 20, 2021). "Biden's closest advisors have ties to big business and Wall Street with some making millions". CNBC . Retrieved March 27, 2021.
  16. ↑ Gibson, Jenna; O'Keefe, Ed (March 12, 2020). "Biden taps new campaign manager as focus shifts to general election". CBS News . Retrieved November 11, 2020.
  17. ↑ Merica, Dan; Zeleny, Jeff (November 16, 2020). "Biden campaign manager Jen O'Malley Dillon to get top White House job". CNN . Retrieved November 17, 2020.
  18. ↑ Korecki, Natasha; Thompson, Alex (November 16, 2020). "Biden begins to fill top White House positions". Politico . Retrieved November 17, 2020.
  19. ↑ Lee, MJ; Zeleny, Jeff; Dovere, Edward-Isaac; Saenz, Arlette (January 24, 2024). "Biden's top White House advisers will move to campaign". CNN . Retrieved January 30, 2024.
  20. ↑ "Biden campaign chair gives a staunch defense of the president's health, says campaign is clear-eyed about debate performance". CNN . July 2, 2024.
  21. ↑ "2024 Election: Live results map". Associated Press . Retrieved November 16, 2024.
Political offices
Preceded by White House Deputy Chief of Staff
2021–2024		Succeeded by
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.