NH Primary Source: Biden campaign now has 25 staffers in first-primary state
Organizers staffing statewide effort, more to be hired in coming days
Organizers staffing statewide effort, more to be hired in coming days
(This is a preview of this week's New Hampshire Primary Source column, which will be published in its entirety early Thursday on WMUR.com.)
25 AND COUNTING. Former Vice President Joe Biden’s New Hampshire campaign says it now has 25 paid staffers on board, with more to join by next week.
WMUR first reported April 25 that Biden hired five senior New Hampshire staffers on the same day he announced his presidential candidacy. Now, we’ve learned that the staff has grown exponentially since then and will continue to grow.
The campaign said it will have 30 paid organizing staff on the ground by next week and staff “in every corner of the state, from Berlin to Salem and from Keene to Portsmouth.”
"Our campaign has hit the ground running in New Hampshire, more than quadrupling our staff in less than two months,” said state campaign director Ian Moskowitz. “Our organizers are spread out across the state talking to voters about Vice President Biden's vision to restore the soul of this nation, rebuild the backbone of our economy, and unify the country.
“And this is only the first step. You're going to see much more from our campaign over the coming weeks and months as we continue to engage with Granite Staters.”
Biden’s campaign, also on Wednesday morning, announced an organizing program to teach “grassroots and digital organizing skills to the next class of organizers.”
Called the “Team Joe Organizing Fellowship,” it’s an eight-week national program to “train leaders across the country the ins-and-outs of grassroots organizing. Senior campaign leadership and staff will conduct weekly online training that prepare fellows to organize on the ground and online,” the campaign said.
The campaign said those who complete the fellowship program “will be equipped with the skills to organize for Joe Biden, as well as for issues that impact their communities. The campaign will continue providing opportunities to fellows throughout the campaign cycle to ensure they are empowered to recruit and engage new supporters.”
“Since day one of our campaign, we have seen incredible energy and enthusiasm across the country for Joe Biden,” national campaign manager Greg Schultz said in a statement.
“Organizing is at the heart of our campaign and will be central to activating the support we are seeing. We are excited to build a nationwide network of organizing fellows that will engage their communities.”
Biden’s campaign said it has hired “dozens” of field organizers in the other early voting states of Iowa, South Carolina and Nevada, as well as New Hampshire.
The campaign said the deadline for applying for the fellowship program is July 8 at 11:59 p.m. It said applications will be accepted on a “rolling basis.”
WMUR reported Monday that Biden will make his third visit to New Hampshire since announcing his candidacy on July 12. As part of the campaign swing, Biden will headline the New Hampshire Young Democrats “Red, White & BBQ,” the group’s major summer event, in Portsmouth.