Florida Dems announce big-data hire from Obama 2012 campaign

@MarcACaputo

Florida Democrats have long faced a conundrum: They greatly outnumber Republicans (522,267 by the most recent count of active registered voters), but the state Legislature, governor's mansion and Cabinet are controlled by the GOP. Only one Democrat, U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, holds a statewide elected office.

One reason for the disparity between registration and results: the Republican Party of Florida has had an organizational edge for years.  But President Obama's data-driven campaign helped counteract that for two presidential elections in Florida. The Florida Democratic Party wants to tap that savvy and know-how and, today, announced the hire of one of Obama's get-out-the-vote hands.

Here's the press release:

Tallahassee, FL — On Thursday, Florida Democratic Party Chairwoman Allison Tant announced the hiring of Aly Sheets, who will be serving as Data Director, managing of the Party's voter database and training Democrats across the state to use data to win campaigns.

"We are thrilled to have Aly Sheets on board as we build our party's ability to communicate with voters," said FDP Chairwoman Allison Tant. "Aly is a veteran data director and analyst who will manage our technology infrastructure, train Democrats how to use it statewide, and help us win races up and down the ballot in 2014."

"Chairwoman Tant has put together a smart and committed team, and I'm excited to be a part of it," said Sheets. "After winning the state for President Obama in 2012 with phenomenal use of data and technology, Florida Democrats are already ahead of the curve. We're going to build on that foundation, and you can bet that smart use of technology and data will be on the front lines our campaign to defeat Governor Rick Scott."

In 2012, Aly Sheets was the GOTV Data Director for the President Obama's campaign in North Carolina, where she managed the statewide voter database and conducted trainings with hundreds of staffers. Before that, she served in the Obama campaign's Chicago headquarters as a National Regional Data Director. Sheets has extensive data and field experience, having also worked in Massachusetts, Nevada and Virginia.

 

Here's the press release:

Tallahassee, FL — On Thursday, Florida Democratic Party Chairwoman Allison Tant announced the hiring of Aly Sheets, who will be serving as Data Director, managing of the Party's voter database and training Democrats across the state to use data to win campaigns.

"We are thrilled to have Aly Sheets on board as we build our party's ability to communicate with voters," said FDP Chairwoman Allison Tant. "Aly is a veteran data director and analyst who will manage our technology infrastructure, train Democrats how to use it statewide, and help us win races up and down the ballot in 2014."

"Chairwoman Tant has put together a smart and committed team, and I'm excited to be a part of it," said Sheets. "After winning the state for President Obama in 2012 with phenomenal use of data and technology, Florida Democrats are already ahead of the curve. We're going to build on that foundation, and you can bet that smart use of technology and data will be on the front lines our campaign to defeat Governor Rick Scott."

In 2012, Aly Sheets was the GOTV Data Director for the President Obama's campaign in North Carolina, where she managed the statewide voter database and conducted trainings with hundreds of staffers. Before that, she served in the Obama campaign's Chicago headquarters as a National Regional Data Director. Sheets has extensive data and field experience, having also worked in Massachusetts, Nevada and Virginia.