Karen Hicks
Karen Hicks is a nationally regarded expert in grassroots political organizing and training. Hicks recently advised British Prime Minister Tony Blair and the Labour Party as they sought and won an historic third term, primarily advising the Party on organization building efforts, voter targeting, design and implementation of a voter contact plan. During the 2004 election cycle, Hicks served as the Field Director for the Democratic National Committee and oversaw the party's $80 million grassroots mobilization effort in the battleground states. Hicks led development of the DNC's organizing, training, and accountability program that organized and mobilized record numbers of volunteers on behalf of Senator John Kerry. At the DNC, Hicks pioneered the use of new campaign technology tools to help manage volunteers, track voter contact, and hold more than 2000 organizers accountable for meeting goals on a daily basis. Prior to joining the DNC, Hicks served as New Hampshire State Director for Governor Howard Dean, where she developed an innovative grassroots organizing strategy building on organization building and mobilization tactics used by the United Farm Workers. The grassroots network developed by Hicks and her team is credited with helping Governor Dean fight to a second place finish after a disappointing result in the Iowa Caucuses.
In addition to the numerous statewide and local political races, Hicks served as Governor Jeanne Shaheen's Director for Policy at the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services. For three years, Hicks was Executive Director of New Hampshire Citizen Action and has worked with dozens of progressive organizations to strengthen planning, advocacy and organizing capacity.
