Elizabeth Lucas
Elizabeth Lucas has over fifteen years of experience in political campaigns and organizing across the country. She has particular experience with ballot initiatives, where she has coordinated nationwide efforts to support progressive initiative campaigns combating climate change, bringing about democracy reforms such as redistricting, expanding voter access, ethics and money in politics and helped to lead the successful fight against an anti-worker ballot measure in Ohio.
Elizabeth ran NextGen America’s ballot initiative program in 2017-2018 from pre-qualification through Election Day, achieving wins that will increase the amount of renewable energy required to be used by utility companies in both Michigan and Nevada and scoring a number of political and policy wins during a tough battle in Arizona where the campaign was outspent two to one.
Elizabeth served as Political Director of the Ballot Initiative Strategy Center (BISC) from 2012-2015, supporting progressive ballot initiative campaigns across the country. As Political Director, Elizabeth worked with other progressive stakeholders to craft state-specific plans, manage focus groups, media, and other efforts, and maintained the BISC Lawyer’s Guild, which monitored and reacted to attacks on initiative law. Elizabeth also managed The Road Ahead, BISC’s annual conference, which convenes top ballot initiative operatives and consultants.
Elizabeth was asked to moderate an environmental justice panel at new Executive Director Chris Melody Fields’ first Road Ahead conference in February 2019. She also presented on her experiences running a national climate change initiative strategy in 2017-2018.
From 2009 to 2011, Elizabeth was Organizing for America’s State Director in Pennsylvania, where she worked with national leadership to develop and execute a state-level plan in support of President Obama’s priorities. During the health care reform debate, Elizabeth organized over 143,000 Pennsylvanians in support of the Affordable Care Act, generating 1,700 events. In addition, in 2010 Elizabeth directed the Democratic Party’s Coordinated Campaign in Pennsylvania, a $3 million effort in which her team activated 16,000 volunteers and made over 1.9 million contacts, resulting in unprecedented turnout in Philadelphia.
Before 2010, Elizabeth worked on several presidential and state-level campaigns, including as a Regional Field Director in the Iowa Caucus for John Edwards, a GOTV Director for the Obama presidential campaign in Tampa in 2008, Deputy Campaign Manager for John Carney’s gubernatorial campaign in Delaware, and on the John Edwards and Kerry/Edwards presidential campaigns. She also handled grassroots recruitment for the Power Shift conference in 2009, in which she brought over 12,000 students and 5,000 activists to the largest and most diverse climate change conference in the country.