The Democratic National Committee is bringing on a former Obama campaign spokeswoman as their national press secretary and launching a new digital-focused position in preparation for 2016, according to details shared first with CNN.
It’s part of what DNC Communications Director called an “aggressive expansion” of the committee’s communications team heading into the election cycle, which will give Democrats a solid shot at taking back the Senate and holding onto the White House.
The DNC has hired Holly Shulman, who formerly served as spokeswoman for international affairs at the Treasury Department, as its new national press secretary, per a committee release. She worked as Obama’s New Hampshire press secretary in 2012 and has previously held communications roles in congressional and statewide races in Ohio, Texas and Pennsylvania.
The DNC is also bringing on Michael Tyler, who previously served as Georgia Democratic Senate candidate Michelle Nunn’s press secretary, as its new director of African American media and regional press secretary for the South. It’s hired Sean Bartlett, who was most recently a communications strategist with the UN Foundation, as senior communications adviser for DNC Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz.
And the committee has created a new position, digital media director, that will oversee “outreach to and use of emerging digital platforms and new forms of content.” That role will be filled by Rob Flaherty, who was previously the DNC’s video director and director for youth media.
DNC Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz said she’s “thrilled” to welcome the new team members, and “excited” about Flaherty’s new role.
“I am thoroughly impressed with the work these individuals have put out in their previous posts, and I am eager for them to bring that energy to the DNC,” she said in a statement. “We are proud of our premier communications team, and I look forward to working with Michael, Holly, Sean and Rob to elect the 45th President of the United States and other Democrats up and down the ticket.”
The Republican National Committee also shuffled its communications staff, bringing on some new members, while others left for campaigns or received promotions. The DNC and RNC are sure to play key roles in the two parties’ messaging and field operations as they face off in the race for the White House in 2016.
DNC Communications Director Mo Elleithee said the new hires will help the committee deliver its message to a wider audience “as we make the contrast clear between a Democratic Party that is fighting for the Middle Class and a Republican Party that is working for the elite few.”
And he said there’s more to come: “This is just the start of an aggressive expansion of our communications team, and I’m excited to kick things into high gear. Game on!”