Kiara Pesante Haughton

WORK HISTORY

EDUCATION

SKILLS

ABOUT KIARA PESANTE HAUGHTON

Named one of the 100 most influential Black Americans by EBONY Magazine, Kiara Pesante Haughton is a progressive political strategist, public relations executive and justice advocate with nearly 15 years of experience specializing in campaigning, strategic communications, crisis management and public affairs.She is the Chief of Communications & Advancement at Demos, the think tank for the racial justice movement, where she oversees the organization’s narrative change, public engagement, and fundraising strategies. Previously, she was Senior Vice President at BerlinRosen, where she led work at the intersection of electoral politics, racial justice and culture.Prior to this, she ran the Communications shop at Civil Rights Corps, an organization dedicated to challenging systemic injustice in the American legal system through innovative, anti-racist litigation. Previously, she was the Communications Director for the Democrats on the U.S. House of Representatives’ Committee on Education and Labor. While there, she led the Democratic Caucus’ communications strategy around the Working Families Agenda and the passage of the Every Student Succeeds Act, while promoting policies to reform school discipline, make college more affordable, raise wages, provide paid leave for all workers and more. She was part of the communications teams for the 2016 and 2012 DNC Conventions.During the 2014 election cycle, she served as the Southern Regional Press Secretary and National Director of African American Media for the Democratic National Committee. There she led the party\'s media outreach in 11 Southern states and advised more than 40 campaigns. Previously, she was Communications Director for D.C. Councilmember Mary Cheh and the District’s Committee on Transportation and the Environment. While there, Pesante Haughton played an integral role in the expansion of rideshare in the city, along with the modernization of the DC\'s taxicab fleet. Pesante Haughton was named the 2017 Young Woman of Achievement for Politics and Campaigns by the Women\'s Information Network, was part of the Women\'s Campaign School at Yale University 2012, and was one of 17 people selected from across the U.S. and Canada for the 2010 Google Policy Fellowship. A dedicated servant leader, she is an active member of Jack and Jill of America, an Ambassador for the Greater DC Diaper Bank and a supporter of Thrive DC. She previously served as a Commissioner on the D.C. Board of Real Estate Appraisers. She is on the Board of Directors for The Hill Preschool and The Arika Trim Foundation.