Former Cincinnati council member and mayoral candidate Yvette Simpson has been named the new chief executive of Democracy for America, the progressive organization founded in 2004 by then-presidential candidate Howard Dean.
Howard Dean's brother, Jim Dean, is stepping down as chair of the grassroots organization and making Simpson the new chief executive, while the current executive director, Charles Chamberlain, will take the role of chair.
"After an election year defined by historic firsts and the profound impact of women of color, I couldn't be more excited about Democracy for America's future with Yvette Simpson as its new chief executive,'' Jim Dean said in a news release.
Simpson said she was "incredibly excited to take the helm of an organization that has been supporting candidates at every level for nearly 15 years."
"We know that the future is female and that our country is becoming more diverse,'' Simpson said. "The leadership of our country, from City Hall to the White House, needs to reflect the life experience and strategic vision of these changing demographics."
She begins in the job on January 1. In the second half of 2018, she served as federal election manager for Democracy for America.
A lawyer, Simpson was first elected to Cincinnati City Council in 2011 and re-elected to a four-year term in 2013. In 2017, instead of running for re-election to council, she ran for mayor, winning by 11 percentage points. But paired against fellow Democrat John Cranley, the incumbent, in the fall, Simpson lost the general election.
Democracy for American has more than one million members nationwide. Since its founding in 2004, its members have raised more than $62 million and made more than 25 million volunteer calls to help elect 1,006 progressive candidates nationwide.