Kahlil Byrd

Kahlil Julian Byrd is a political advisor and entrepreneur regarded as an expert in national cross-partisan reform.[1] He has led several national political organizations in the United States. Byrd serves as founder and CEO of Invest America Fund, a public policy, reform, investment research, data and advisory firm. He is a Life Member of the Council on Foreign Relations.[2]

Kahlil Byrd
Born
Kahlil Julian Byrd
NationalityAmerican
Alma materMorehouse College, B.A.
Harvard Kennedy School, MPA
Spouse(s)Sarah Haacke Byrd (2011–present)

He served as CEO of Americans Elect, a reform organization that sought to use online voting for state primaries to support a bipartisan ticket for the 2012 United States presidential election outside the two parties.

Education

Byrd holds a Master of Public Administration from the Harvard Kennedy School and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Morehouse College.

Democracy reform

Byrd began his career in broadcast journalism, working for National Public Radio in Washington, D.C.[3] He later joined The BBC as a producer. Following his graduate studies at Harvard, Byrd became an entrepreneur to focus on "driving events" rather than just commenting and interpreting them. In 2005, he was appointed spokesman and communications director for Deval Patrick's 2006 campaign for governor of Massachusetts. Byrd left the campaign in April 2006 to "return to business interests".[4] In 2007, Byrd joined the Patrick administration as Director of Gubernatorial Appointments.[5]

Byrd was also a Term Member and an International Affairs Fellow with the Council on Foreign Relations.[6]

Byrd served as the first president of StudentsFirst, the grassroots education reform advocacy organization founded by Michelle Rhee, former chancellor of District of Columbia Schools.[7][8] StudentsFirst was a non-profit organization based in Sacramento, California. As president, Byrd managed the organization's long-term strategy, operations budget and growth. In announcing his departure in July 2013, Rhee credited Byrd with “leav[ing] the organization stronger and more prepared to challenge the status quo on behalf of kids”.[9]

From 2009 through the 2012 election cycle, Byrd was chief executive of Americans Elect, a national organization that aimed, through technology, to nominate and bipartisan ticket for president. Under Byrd’s leadership Americans Elect was placed on the ballot in 29 states to conduct an online convention, with the intention of placing a cross partisan presidential ticket on all 50 state ballots.[10][11] During the 2012 presidential election cycle, Americans Elect worked to nominate and elect a third-party candidate for president, but no candidate gained sufficient support to meet the national threshold for candidacy for the convention, as established by the organization.”[12] In May 2012, Americans Elect decided to suspend the planned online convention without fielding a candidate.[13] but not before being widely praised for its technology and brand innovations. The organization won 2012 People’s Choice Award at South by Southwest,[14] the Campaigns & Elections 2012 CampaignTech Innovator Award,[15] and,Campaigns & Elections Magazine awarded Byrd a Campaign Tech Innovator award in the nonpartisan innovator category.[16] The organization was awarded two 2012 CLIO Awards, for content and interactive excellence.[17] During his tenure, the organization raised over US$40 million and established a fully functioning start-up with over 150 paid staff, 4,000 contractors and 3,000 volunteers nationwide. Over two years, Americans Elect had 3.5 million unique visitors to its website and acquired more than 450,000 members.

Invest America

Byrd is founder and CEO of Invest America, a seed fund focused on financing and guiding political reform investors by leveraging data, analytics and nationwide research.[18] Invest America advises entrepreneurs, family offices, foundations, and corporations in efforts to develop effective, issue-driven spending programs and strategies for investing effectively in winning across the issue spectrum.[19]

Invest America partners include Ipsos Public Affairs, the world’s third-largest marketing research firm, with whom Invest America has launched “Our Age of Uncertainty”,[20][21] a sustained national discussion and public private engagement. This initiative is designed to shape the thinking and understanding of America’s top 200 influencers and decision makers as they grapple with an historically political environment in the United States and throughout the world.

In January 2019, the Washington Post reported that Byrd and Invest America are among the insiders working with former Starbucks Chairman Howard Schultz in his “extensive operation” to explore an independent bid for president.[22] According to the article, Byrd is working on ballot access plans alongside Kellen Arno of Grandview Campaigns. The article stated, “If he moves forward, Schultz this fall would begin the process of collecting signatures to gain ballot access in all 50 states. The campaign would have a goal of polling above 15 percent nationally to ensure Schultz’s inclusion in the general-election debates.”

Honors, affiliations and publications

Byrd is a board member or advisor of a number of organizations, including With Honor[23] and Take Back our Republic.[24] He is also a council member at NationSwell[1] and an alumnus of the Council on Foreign Relations International Fellows program.[25] Byrd is a senior advisor and board member of With Honor, which is helping to elect principled military veterans in Congress and help amplify their cross-partisan agenda that finds solutions for the American people.[26] Byrd continues to write widely about political entrepreneurs, entrepreneurship, and reform contributing to Forbes.com,[16] HuffingtonPost.com,[17] The Hill,[18] and has appeared on Fox News.[27] and the Charlie Rose Show.[28]

His published articles include:

  • Voting Needs to Be Easier. Period., Morning Consult, 2021[29]
  • Prospects for Climate Change Policy Reform - A Landscape Study of the Conservative Environmental Movement, Mertz Gilmore, 2018[30]
  • Reawakening America: The New Professional Political Class, Forbes, 2017[31]
  • The Founders of Helena: Just 21 Years Old and Reshaping Political Entrepreneurship, Huffington Post, 2017[32]
  • Too Many 'Too's': The Journey of the Insurgent Candidate, The Hill, 2016[33]
  • More Than Just Two 'Cups of Tea,' But Something Stronger, The Hill, 2016[34]
  • Independent Reformers Could Have Sweetened This Fetid 2016 Election Brew, Huffington Post, 2016[35]
  • Reinvesting in the New America, Medium, 2016[36]
  • Invest America Fund and Bridge Alliance Collaboration, Bridge Alliance, 2016[37]
  • Reinvesting in the New America, Huffington Post, 2016[38]
  • Political Entrepreneurship and ‘The Fear Factor’, Huffington Post, 2014[39]
  • Political Entrepreneurs Need a New Teddy Bear, Huffington Post, 2014[40]
  • Political Entrepreneurs and Return on Investment, Huffington Post, 2013[41]
  • Political Entrepreneurs Are Driving a New Reform Surge, Huffington Post, 2013[41]
  • Americans Elect 2012 Mission Report, AmericansElect.org, 2012[42]
  • Sustaining a Free Press in the Middle East, MIT Media in Transition Conference, 2003[43]

Personal life

Byrd is married to Sarah Haacke Byrd,[44] executive director at Women Moving Millions.[45] Haacke Byrd previously held directorships at the Joyful Heart Foundation,[46] Bellevue/NYU Program for Survivors of Torture[47] Facing History and Ourselves[48] (Choosing to Participate initiative, advancing civic participation and positive change in democracy) and the Anti-Defamation League.

See also

References
  1. "What Are 'Political Entrepreneurs'? This Guy Believes They're the Heroes Who Will Disrupt Washington's Gridlock". NationSwell. July 24, 2017. Retrieved June 30, 2019.
  2. "Council on Foreign Relations Membership Roster".
  3. "Networks, Stations and Services Represented" (PDF). GPO. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 10, 2015. Retrieved November 20, 2013.
  4. "Kahlil Byrd leaves the Patrick campaign - Talking Politics". Blog.thephoenix.com. April 12, 2006. Retrieved February 22, 2017.
  5. "Ex-Patrick press aide donates to Baker camp". Boston Herald. Retrieved May 21, 2016.
  6. "Kahlil Byrd". Council on Foreign Relations. Retrieved May 21, 2016.
  7. "Blog: Former Americans Elect chief may head Rhee's StudentsFirst". POLITICO. September 2012. Retrieved May 21, 2016.
  8. AP (Associated Press). "Michelle Rhee Names Kahlil Byrd as StudentsFirst New President". Los Angeles Sentinel. Retrieved May 21, 2016.
  9. Byron Tau, "President of Michelle Rhee's Group Leaves", POLITICO.com, July 12, 2013; retrieved August 31, 2013.
  10. "How Americans Elect's Kahlil Byrd is Starting a Third-Party Movement". New York Magazine. January 2012. Retrieved May 21, 2016.
  11. "Poll Vault". Harvard Kennedy School Magazine. Summer 2012. Retrieved May 21, 2016.
  12. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on December 3, 2013. Retrieved December 2, 2013.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  13. Alec MacGillis (May 15, 2012). "Our Centrist Savior Misses His/Her Deadline". New Republic. Retrieved May 21, 2016.
  14. "Americans Elect Wins SXSW People's Choice Award". PCWorld. March 14, 2012. Retrieved May 21, 2016.
  15. "Campaigns & Elections Magazine Announces". TechPresident. Retrieved May 21, 2016.
  16. "Campaigns & Elections Magazine Announces". Campaign Tech Innovators. Retrieved April 5, 2012.
  17. DigitasLBi UK. "Latest DigitasLBi News and Press Releases". DigitasLBi. Retrieved May 21, 2016.
  18. "Reawakening America: The New Professional Political Class". February 21, 2017. Retrieved February 28, 2017.
  19. https://www.newamerica.org/our-people/kahlil-byrd/
  20. "DocSend - Simple, intelligent, modern content sending". DocSend. Retrieved June 30, 2019.
  21. "Age of Uncertainty". Ipsos. Retrieved June 30, 2019.
  22. https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/howard-schultzs-presidential-ambitions-spurred-a-months-long-effort-to-disrupt-the-2020-race/2019/01/29/30a22154-2408-11e9-ad53-824486280311_story.html
  23. "With Honor Action". With Honor Action. Retrieved June 30, 2019.
  24. "About". takeback.org. Retrieved June 30, 2019.
  25. "Council on Foreign Relations International Fellows" (PDF). cfr.org. Retrieved June 30, 2019.
  26. "Harvard Kennedy School Magazine".
  27. "Power Player Plus".
  28. "Charlie Rose Show".
  29. "Voting Needs to Be Easier. Period".
  30. "Prospects for Climate Change Policy Reform". New America. Retrieved June 30, 2019.
  31. Flows, Capital. "Reawakening America: The New Professional Political Class". Forbes. Retrieved June 30, 2019.
  32. Byrd, Kahlil (April 23, 2017). "The Founders of Helena: Just 21 Years-Old and Reshaping Political Entrepreneurship". HuffPost. Retrieved June 30, 2019.
  33. Rehkopf, Bill (August 17, 2016). "Too many 'too's': The journey of the insurgent candidate". TheHill. Retrieved June 30, 2019.
  34. Jordan, Chuck (November 4, 2016). "More than just two 'cups of tea,' but something stronger". TheHill. Retrieved June 30, 2019.
  35. Byrd, Kahlil (October 25, 2016). "Independent Reformers Could Have Sweetened This Fetid 2016 Election Brew". HuffPost. Retrieved June 30, 2019.
  36. Byrd, Kahlil (December 13, 2016). "Reinvesting In The New America - Kahlil Byrd". Medium. Retrieved June 30, 2019.
  37. Byrd, Kahlil. "Invest America Fund and Bridge Alliance Collaboration". Bridge Alliance. Retrieved June 30, 2019.
  38. Byrd, Kahlil (December 15, 2016). "Reinvesting In The New America". HuffPost. Retrieved June 30, 2019.
  39. Byrd, Kahlil (March 26, 2014). "Political Entrepreneurship and 'The Fear Factor'". HuffPost. Retrieved June 30, 2019.
  40. Byrd, Kahlil (January 2, 2014). "Political Entrepreneurs Need a New Teddy Bear". HuffPost. Retrieved June 30, 2019.
  41. Byrd, Kahlil (November 20, 2013). "Political Entrepreneurs Are Driving a New Reform Surge". HuffPost. Retrieved June 30, 2019.
  42. https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5b7ac5ffb98a7807f7abe3d8/t/5b7c365a352f53dadbbadd92/1534867039877/Americans+Elect+Final+Mission+Report+%28September++2012%29.pdf
  43. https://cmsw.mit.edu/mit3/papers/byrd.pdf
  44. May, Author Maggie (June 5, 2019). "Shaping the Shapers: How WMM Trains Women in Social Change". philanthropywomen.org. Retrieved June 30, 2019.
  45. "Women Moving Millions – Women Moving Millions". www.womenmovingmillions.org. Retrieved June 30, 2019.
  46. "Speaker Detail - Conference on Crimes Against Women". conferencecaw.org. Retrieved June 30, 2019.
  47. "Bellevue/NYU Program for Survivors of Torture". Bellevue/NYU Program for Survivors of Torture. Retrieved June 30, 2019.
  48. "Facing History and Ourselves". Facing History and Ourselves. Retrieved June 30, 2019.
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