Meet Our Staff
In concert with their dedicated work on Representation2020 and its goals, our staff works on several other areas of electoral reform within FairVote. From work on fair representation voting with multi-seat districts to pro-suffrage policies at the local level of government, our goal of achieving a fair and representative democracy drives our passion for Representation2020 and all that it stands for.
A Note From Our Project Chair...
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"In 1972, just after turning eight years old, I got the campaign bug. In my small town in upstate New York, I knocked on doors, attended rallies and handed out material about the presidential campaign. Since then I have worked to elect many candidates and pass ballot measures - and even won in three student council president campaigns at Swarthmore College. I loved being council president and always assumed I would run for office after college.
But one campaign job led to the next, and then my first daughter was born, followed by my son and another daughter. I helped my husband start FairVote, an election reform non-profit. While I love that work, I never lost the desire to run for elected office.
I started Representation2020 in 2013 in part to channel that desire into meaningful change that might allow many more women to run and win. We live in challenging, terrifying, exciting times - we need systems of government and representatives who reflect the people. There are many things that we can’t change - like human nature - but I’m putting my energy into things we can change. That starts with changing rules and voting systems so that everyone’s voice is heard in our representative democracy."
Cynthia Richie Terrell is a founder of Representation2020 and FairVote and has served as a board member of several charitable organizations and Quaker institutions including the American Friends Service Committee and Sandy Spring Friends School. Terrell has worked in the area of voting system reform in this country and abroad, traveling in 1993 to New Zealand to support that country's successful referendum to adopt a proportional voting system.
Previously, Terrell worked extensively on political campaigns, working as campaign manager and field director for campaigns for the U.S. President, U.S. House and U.S. Senate, for governor and for state and city-wide initiative efforts, including a state equal rights amendment and a city campaign for fair representation voting.
Terrell has been published in the Washington Post, The Nation, and The Christian Science Monitor and has appeared on C-SPAN’s Washington Journal. She has three children and is active in the Quaker community and in civic affairs in Takoma Park, Maryland. She graduated with a B.A. in political science from Swarthmore College in 1986.
But one campaign job led to the next, and then my first daughter was born, followed by my son and another daughter. I helped my husband start FairVote, an election reform non-profit. While I love that work, I never lost the desire to run for elected office.
I started Representation2020 in 2013 in part to channel that desire into meaningful change that might allow many more women to run and win. We live in challenging, terrifying, exciting times - we need systems of government and representatives who reflect the people. There are many things that we can’t change - like human nature - but I’m putting my energy into things we can change. That starts with changing rules and voting systems so that everyone’s voice is heard in our representative democracy."
Cynthia Richie Terrell is a founder of Representation2020 and FairVote and has served as a board member of several charitable organizations and Quaker institutions including the American Friends Service Committee and Sandy Spring Friends School. Terrell has worked in the area of voting system reform in this country and abroad, traveling in 1993 to New Zealand to support that country's successful referendum to adopt a proportional voting system.
Previously, Terrell worked extensively on political campaigns, working as campaign manager and field director for campaigns for the U.S. President, U.S. House and U.S. Senate, for governor and for state and city-wide initiative efforts, including a state equal rights amendment and a city campaign for fair representation voting.
Terrell has been published in the Washington Post, The Nation, and The Christian Science Monitor and has appeared on C-SPAN’s Washington Journal. She has three children and is active in the Quaker community and in civic affairs in Takoma Park, Maryland. She graduated with a B.A. in political science from Swarthmore College in 1986.
Staff Members
Michelle C. Whittaker focuses on strategic messaging, constituency engagement, social media interaction, website development, and audio/visual resource development. Michelle joined the staff in April 2015. Previously, Michelle worked as the Communications and New Media Director for the General Board of Church and Society, an international public policy program agency of The United Methodist Church, where she has won several awards for visual design and communications projects. Her experience extends into corporate finance as a technical writer and interface design specialist for Towers Watson, a financial consulting firm. She studied graphic and web design at The Art Institute Online and The Art Institute of Washington. Outside of her work in the office, Michelle enjoys sports, art, music and food with her husband, Doogie, and daughter, London.
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