LOS ANGELES – Today, the Courage Campaign announced that Sarah Callahan will serve as Chief Operating Officer of the 700,000-member online and community organizing network based in California. Callahan, a veteran of numerous campaigns in California and across the country, will immediately begin leading the daily operations of the Courage Campaign, a multi-issue progressive advocacy organization focused on achieving full equality for all Californians by solving California’s structural governance problems and restoring marriage equality to the state.

“Right now, the Courage Campaign is using the same online tools and strategies so successfully employed by Barack Obama’s presidential campaign to channel the online enthusiasm of California progressives into specific, targeted activities to produce real results,” said Mary Jane Stevenson, state director of Organizing for America. “With Sarah Callahan spearheading the team, the Courage Campaign should be able to mobilize and empower Californians across the state to support its ambitious agenda.”

For more than 20 years, Callahan has been a leader in progressive organizing and electoral campaigns, working in over 100 candidate and issue campaigns at the local, state and national level. For the past six years, Callahan has worked for the National Union of Healthcare Workers and Service Employees International Union-United Healthcare Workers West, providing day-to-day management of the electoral, grassroots-legislative and political organizing programs of the union. Her managerial responsibilities included supervising a department staff composed of two Assistant Directors, eleven Regional Political Organizers, three Member Political Organizers, and an internal member communications program.

“Sarah Callahan is one of the most effective campaign strategists in California and will help the Courage Campaign become an even stronger force for progressive change across the state at a time this state most needs leadership,” said Rick Jacobs, founder and Chair of the Courage Campaign. “As a labor and community organizer who has helped design and implement some of the most successful field campaigns in California, Sarah is the perfect choice to help the Courage Campaign mobilize thousands of people to achieve progressive victories from the Central Valley to coastal communities.”

Prior to her work with the labor movement, Callahan was the Caucus Director for the Connecticut State Senate Democrats and managed the successful election effort to restore the Democrats into the majority in 1996.

“I am excited to join the Courage Campaign at this critical moment as we work to make California more progressive and governable,” said Callahan. “This is a great opportunity to help the Courage Campaign mobilize voters on a number of important issues facing California, including solving our state budget crisis, fixing our broken state government and achieving full equality for all Californians.”

Callahan joins a Courage Campaign leadership team that has doubled in size over the last three months. The team includes 21 paid staffers and advisors, including online and offline organizers working to build a strong and vigorous progressive movement through a variety of campaigns, training events, and field operations across California.

To see a full list of Courage Campaign staff and advisors, click here:

http://www.couragecampaign.org/Staff