Meet the Staff
Kyle McDermott, Executive Director
Born into a family of steelworkers and teachers, Kyle was raised in Zoar, Ohio and graduated with a B.A. in political science from Baldwin-Wallace College. In 2006, McDermott served as the state director for the Ohio AFL-CIO statewide political program. As the national field director for United Steelworkers, McDermott played a crucial role during the historic 2008 election. More recently, McDermott worked as campaign manager for the Secretary of State’s race in 2010. McDermott will assume the position of executive director following the November 8 election of this year, after fulfilling commitments to the American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) and the We Are Ohio campaign to defeat Issue 2.
Liz Brown, Deputy Executive Director
Liz came to her current position as deputy executive director of the Ohio Democratic Party with a background in politics and journalism, having worked for various political campaigns, National Public Radio, and New York Magazine. However, she marks the start of her career with the year she spent between high school and college as an AmeriCorps member with City Year Greater Philadelphia, where she assistant taught and developed service learning projects in a public middle school. This experience informed her subsequent career moves and commitment to public service.
Returning to Ohio politics in 2008, Liz managed a targeted state House race, beating a 7-year incumbent in what was an essential race to the Democrats’ reclaiming of the majority of the Ohio House after fourteen years in the minority. She then worked in the communications department at the Ohio House of Representatives under Speaker Armond Budish, where she played a key role in the public relations strategies of the Democrats. In the 2010 elections, Liz continued her work with the Ohio House Democrats, serving as their political director and managing their 99 races across the state of Ohio in defense of the Democratic majority.
Ohio born and raised, Liz is a graduate of Granville High School and Columbia University, with a degree in English and writing.
Jerid Kurtz, Communications Director
A lifelong Ohioan, Jerid Kurtz was raised by a family of autoworkers in Dayton and graduated from Miamisburg High School. Moving north, Kurtz spent nearly ten years in Cleveland, earning a B.A. in Political Science and English, and a law degree from Case Western Reserve University. Prior to joining the Ohio Democratic Party in March of 2012, Kurtz was privileged to serve numerous Democratic allies, including Governor Ted Strickland and Congressman Tim Ryan. Kurtz also was part of the historic legislative fight to stop Senate Bill 5 in the Ohio State House and end the Republican attacks on workers’ rights.
Meredith Tucker, Deputy Communications Director
Meredith Tucker began her career of political and legislative work in Northeast Ohio, where she worked for Cuyahoga County Commissioner Peter Lawson Jones. In 2008, she served as the GOTV Coordinator for Obama for America in Athens, Ohio. After the 2008 cycle, Meredith worked for various campaigns, helping elect Democrats at the local and statewide level. In 2010, she relocated to Columbus to serve as Representative Debbie Phillips’ legislative aide for the Ohio House Democratic Caucus. During Meredith’s time there, Representative Phillips was re-elected to the House and elected to a leadership position as Assistant Minority Whip.
Most recently, she served as the Regional Communications Director in Southern, Southeastern, and Eastern Ohio for the We Are Ohio campaign, resulting in the defeat of Senate bill 5 (Issue 2). Meredith is a native of Lakewood, Ohio; and a proud alumna of Ohio University where she studied political science with a specialization in American Politics.
Andrew Zucker, Press Secretary
Andrew joined the Ohio Democratic Party as Deputy Communications Director in October 2011, taking on the role of Press Secretary in March 2012. A Solon, Ohio native and proud alumnus of Ohio University in Athens with a degree in political communication strategies, Andrew cut his teeth on then-Senator Barack Obama’s historic campaign for president in 2008, crisscrossing the country – from Chicago to Colorado, Iowa to Texas and Minnesota where, as Youth Vote Director, he built the largest and most effective youth vote program in the country. Before joining ODP, Andrew worked for the AFL-CIO as Ohio Deputy Communications Director.
Erik Greathouse, Finance Director
For the last five years, Erik has served as a fundraising and political advisor to Governor Ted Strickland and the Ohio Democratic Party. In 2000, Erik led Mike Ross for Congress to victory against a five-term incumbent Republican. After the victory, Erik went to Washington with the Congressman and served as his Chief-of-Staff. Erik also was New Hampshire Campaign Director for Dick Gephardt for President and in 2004 was campaign manager for Claire McCaskill for Governor in Missouri, where the campaign handily defeated the incumbent governor in the primary.
In the 2006 campaign cycle, Erik helped build the campaign and fundraising operation of Claire McCaskill’s campaign for Senate in Missouri. In addition, working on behalf of the Democratic Governors Association, Erik led fundraising teams on behalf of three gubernatorial campaigns, Ted Strickland of Ohio, Mike Beebe of Arkansas, and incumbent Governor John Baldacci of Maine.
Before managing campaigns across America, Erik worked for one the nation’s premier polling firms and a national fundraising firm from 1996 to 1999. As a campaign finance director on over fourteen different campaigns during this time, Erik oversaw the creation of the fundraising infrastructure, drafted finance plans, scheduled and organized fundraising trips across the country, developed and implemented PAC fundraising plans and managed finance staff.
Lauren Harmon, Women’s Caucus Director
Lauren Harmon joined the Ohio Democratic Party as Women’s Caucus Director in June of 2011. She brings with her years of fundraising and campaign experience from Arizona and the Southwest. After getting her start as a field organizer and running field programs in Republican districts, Lauren went on to manage and lobby on behalf of a statewide Building Trades political action committee. She later served as Senior Deputy Finance Director for the Arizona Democratic Party. Lauren has managed campaigns from city council to Attorney General, including her most recent position running the campaign of an EMILY’s List candidate for Las Vegas City Council.
Brendan Kelley, Voter File Manager
Brendan Kelley joined the Ohio Democratic Party as Voter File Manager in July of 2011 after five years of working on state and local races all over Ohio. A native of the Chicagoland area, Brendan came to Ohio in 2002 to study at Oberlin College, where he earned a dual degree in Politics and Applied Mathematics. Most recently before joining ODP, Brendan managed the successful re-election of State Representative John Patrick Carney and oversaw the petition review efforts for We Are Ohio’s campaign to repeal Senate Bill 5. Brendan is currently pursuing a Masters in Public Administration from OSU’s John Glenn School of Public Affairs.
Cory Warfield, Field Director
Cory joined the Ohio Democratic Party as Field Director in November 2011 with more than 5 years of experience as a field operative on campaigns across the country. Immediately prior to joining ODP, he served as the Deputy Field Director for Central, Southern and Southeastern Ohio for the We Are Ohio campaign that defeated Senate Bill 5 – Issue 2 – by a more than twenty percent margin. During the 2010 campaign cycle, Cory was the Deputy Field Director for the Nevada State Democratic Party, which was instrumental in Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s successful re-election bid. Cory is a graduate of Vanderbilt University with a degree in communication studies and political science.
Elizabeth Walters, Political Director
Liz joined the Ohio Democratic Party as Political Director in November of 2011 after 6 years of legislative and political work in Northeast Ohio. Prior to joining ODP, she served as the Deputy Field Director for Northeast Ohio for the We Are Ohio campaign that defeated Senate Bill 5 – Issue 2 – by a more than twenty percent margin. A native of Summit County, Liz is a graduate of Cuyahoga Falls High School and earned a BA in History from Saint Vincent College in Latrobe, Pennsylvania. Liz completed Masters in Public Administration at Cleveland State University.
After years of volunteering on political campaigns, Liz joined Obama’s Campaign for Change in Ohio as a field organizer. Following the 2008 cycle, she went to work for her hometown Congresswoman, Betty Sutton, eventually serving as District Director for the 13th Congressional District. She took a break from the Congresswoman’s office during the 2010 cycle, serving as a regional GOTV Lead for the Ohio Democratic Party Coordinated Campaign.
