I’ve spent more than two decades on the front lines of the major forces that have reshaped American democracy.
I began my career in the halls of Congress and on major Republican campaigns, at a time when digital media was just beginning to transform politics. I was part of the effort to bring campaigns and institutions into that new era, learning firsthand how technology could expand reach, mobilize voters, and change the speed and scale of political engagement.
I later worked for Google and Twitter as those platforms became central to public life, helping to onboard political leaders and launch civic tools at a moment when social media was fundamentally rewiring how information flows, how voters organize, and how influence is built.
At the same time, I witnessed—and helped navigate—the rise of small donors and insurgent candidates who challenged the political establishment and reshaped Congress from the outside. I also played a role in running an election during a global pandemic, when the resilience of our democratic systems was tested under extraordinary pressure.
These were not theoretical shifts. I was in the room as they were happening.
And I believed, for much of my career, that these forces—technology, new coalitions, outside pressure—would be enough to drive meaningful reform and better governance for the public.
That belief led me to run for Vice President as an independent in 2016, to offer voters a real alternative at a moment of deep frustration with the two-party options. It led me to build organizations like Stand Up Republic and Citizen Data, focused on strengthening democratic institutions and creating new pathways for change from outside the traditional system.
But over time, something became clear.
Even as politics has changed dramatically the system has not kept up
Today, more Americans identify as independent than either political party. Voters are exhausted by division and hungry for practical solutions. And yet, the structure of our system still limits competition, filters out capable leaders, and rewards ideological extremes.
We are producing outcomes that don’t reflect how most Americans actually think.
For a long time, I believed we could fix that from the outside.
I no longer believe that’s enough.
We are at the beginning of a new political era, and the institutions of our system are still anchored in the past. If we want a different kind of politics, one that is more responsive, more representative, and more solutions-oriented, we have to create competition and a better way.
That’s what drew me to the Forward Party.
Forward is not just responding to frustration. It is building the infrastructure for what comes next: recruiting candidates, expanding ballot access, and creating a viable path for leaders who want to serve without being forced through narrow ideological gatekeeping.
This is not easy work. It is a long-term effort to create real competition in a system that has been designed to prevent it.
But I believe this is a pivotal moment.
The demand for something different is no longer fringe; it is mainstream, growing, and increasingly urgent.
And for the first time in a long time, we have a real opportunity to meet that demand, not just with ideas, but with a structure that can sustain it.
No doubt this is a big swing.
But after everything I’ve seen, and everything I’ve been part of, I believe it’s exactly the right one. And I believe this moment demands more of me–and all of us.
