EMILY'S List Launches National Campaign Training Program

WASHINGTON, D.C. – EMILY's List, the largest financial resource for women running for elective office, will announce the launch of Campaign Corps – a national campaign training program – with a kick-off reception tonight at the National Democratic Club at 6:00pm. EMILY's List President Ellen R. Malcolm and former Participation 2000 Chair Sen. Jon Corzine will welcome past Participation 2000 alumni.

Campaign Corps trains talented recent college graduates and places them on targeted, progressive Democratic campaigns. Formerly known as Participation 2000, the program has placed hundreds of staffers on some of the most important political campaigns in the country since 1988.

Campaign Corps receives hundreds of applications from recent college graduates across the country and accepts a class of 20-30. Once accepted, staffers attend a week of Campaign School, where they learn the basics of political campaigning —voter targeting, field organizing, fundraising, and press strategy — from the country's leading Democratic operatives. After completion of Campaign School, participants are immediately sent to targeted campaigns, where they're paid to work with candidates and other political professionals for the last three months of the campaign.

"One of the most important factors on a winning campaign is a talented staff," said EMILY's List President Ellen R. Malcolm. "In addition to having a dedicated, creative, and energetic campaign team, staffers need to be well-trained and armed with the knowledge to win," said Malcolm. "Campaign Corps seeks out the best of the best who get trained by today's top political operatives. Campaign Corps helps candidates win while opening the door wide for participants who are starting a career in politics."

Campaign Corps assists its graduates with finding employment after the election. Previous graduates have gone on to hold key positions with progressive organizations like The Service Employees International Union, League of Conservation Voters, Democratic committees and numerous Democratic members of the House and Senate.

In its 18-year history, EMILY's List has helped to elect seven women governors, 11 women to the United States Senate and 55 women to the U.S. House of Representatives. In the 2002 elections, EMILY's List and its almost 73,000 members contributed nearly $9.7 million to pro-choice Democratic women candidates.To learn more about Campaign Corps, visit www.campaigncorps.org.