The Virginia Democratic Party has appointed Robert Dempsey to serve as its new executive director, party spokeswoman Ashley Bauman announced Monday.
Dempsey will replace Lauren Harmon, who worked as executive director for the Democratic Party for less than a year.
According to the Association of State Democratic Chairs website, “the executive director is in charge of all day-to-day operations of the DPVA, the management of party staff, and serves as a senior advisor to the chair, steering committee, and central committee.”
In February, Dempsey was fired from his position as executive director of the North Carolina Democratic Party by Chairman Randy Voller, after eight months in the position.
Dempsey has worked for years as an organizer within the Democratic Party. Prior to working in North Carolina, he managed the successful campaign of Rep. Scott Peters, D-CA, in 2012 and served as the executive director of the Vermont Democratic Party.
Dempsey takes on his new role in the aftermath of several democratic victories in Virginia, including the gubernatorial and attorney general elections. This year, Dempsey will oversee the Virginia Democrats as they face a polarized budget debate in the state legislature and a competitive re-election bid for Senator Mark Warner, who faces a challenging opponent in former Republican National Committee chairman Ed Gillespie.
Virginia’s Republican Party Chairman Pat Mullins also recently appointed a new executive director, Shaun Kenney, who has been involved in the party for several years. Kenney formerly served as Communications Director under Ed Gillespie, chairman at the time in 2007.