Obama Campaign Names Senior South Carolina Staff
Brayboy, Bird, and Wade join leadership team
COLUMBIA, SC — Illinois Senator Barack Obama’s presidential campaign today announced the appointment of Rick Wade as a top advisor and the addition of two new members to the South Carolina staff.
Stacey Brayboy will lead the staff as state director, and Jeremy Bird will serve as field director. Brayboy and Bird join a staff that already includes Political Director Anton Gunn. Rick Wade is a senior adviser to the campaign.
“Stacey’s knowledge of South Carolina and the needs of people across state is a great addition to our South Carolina team,” said Barack Obama. “Together we are committed to engaging the thousands of South Carolinians who are committed to changing this country.”
A native of Manning, SC, Brayboy served as the state corps director for the Virginia coordinated campaign during Tim Kaine’s successful 2005 gubernatorial run. In 2004 she worked as the regional director for Wesley Clark’s 2004 presidential campaign in the Palmetto State and also ran the South Carolina Votes Project, a statewide grassroots voter turnout program that reached 140,000 South Carolina voters.
“We need a leader who can unite us, and Barack Obama is the right person at the right time — for South Carolina and for America,” Brayboy said.
Bird comes to South Carolina from the Democratic National Committee, where he served as the deputy national field director in 2004. Bird worked as former Vermont Governor Howard Dean’s congressional district director in New Hampshire during the 2004 Democratic primary.
Wade, a Lancaster native, is a prominent national political consultant, commentator and business leader. He brings a remarkable depth and breadth of experience to the Obama campaign.
Additional Biographical Information
Stacey Brayboy — Brayboy served as the deputy director of the Virginia Council on Human Rights. She formerly worked for U.S. Senator Ernest “Fritz” Hollings and U.S. Representative Robin Tallon. Brayboy is a graduate of Francis Marion University and holds a masters degree from Clark Atlanta University.
Rick Wade — Wade served as a member of South Carolina Governor Jim Hodges’ cabinet and worked as chief of staff for former Lt. Gov. Nick Theodore. In 2002 Wade ran for Secretary of State in South. He holds a bachelors degree from the University of South Carolina and a masters in Public Administration from Harvard University.
Jeremy Bird — Bird worked as the training director for Democratic GAIN, where he trained thousands of field organizers to work on local, statewide, and national campaigns. Bird earned a Masters in Theological Studies from Harvard Divinity School.
# # #
