Emerge Washington Hires Jessica Forsythe as Executive Director
Nation’s Largest Network of Women Elected Officials and Candidates Announces its Latest Hire in the Fight for Democracy.
SEATTLE, WA — Emerge Washington, the state’s premier organization that recruits and trains Democratic women to run for office, announced Jessica Forsythe as its next Executive Director. In this role, Jessica will oversee the operations of Emerge Washington: running Emerge Washington’s signature training program, supporting alums running for office, and helping ensure Emerge women from communities across Washington have their voices heard. An Emerge graduate herself, Jessica Forsythe comes to the role with a proven track record of empowering women and nonbinary candidates to run for office, as both an Emerge trainer and mentor and Redmond City Councilmember.
“We are excited to have Jessica Forsythe joining us as the executive director of Emerge Washington,” said A’shanti F. Gholar, President of Emerge. “Already, Jessica has proven her dedication to help lead the charge and see Democratic women run for office up and down the ballot – and win. Her efforts will help Emerge reach thousands more women of the New American Majority, repower political structures, and foster a lift as you climb culture as we reach for our 2035 goals. We are proud to add her to our amazing team and know she will be a great fit.”
“I’m honored to join the Emerge Washington team and serve as the next executive director to lead our state in this critical time for women.” said Jessica Forsythe, Executive Director of Emerge Washington. “Since participating in the Emerge training myself, I’ve discovered my passion for mentoring candidates while highlighting that their lived experience, drive to create lasting change, and dedication to lead are the building blocks needed for a representative democracy. Emerge has worked hard to elect women all across the country, and I’m excited to step into this role for Emerge Washington to lead their efforts here. Washington State is on the cusp of achieving gender parity in the state legislature and I am dedicated to seeing Washington join the ranks of Nevada and New Mexico in achieving that goal.”
Jessica Forsythe, Executive Director of Emerge Washington
Emerge Washington has a strong track record of success and has trained over 250 women to run for office with 65 currently serving in various levels of elected office. In the 2024 election cycle, Washington state celebrates that 93% of our Emerge incumbents won re-election.
Since 2020, Jessica has served as a member of the Redmond City Council and on Council Leadership, where she secured an additional $2.5 million in Human Services funding to keep people housed during the pandemic, wrote a grant framework that provided support for over 360 small and micro businesses throughout the pandemic, and conceived a policy that led to Senate Bill 5452 that succeeded in opening up statewide funding for bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure.
Emerge had more than 550 alums on the ballot in 2024 with about a 70% win-rate, and currently has more than 1,000 alums in elected office across the country, and has trained more than 6,000 Democratic women to run for office. The organization is committed to reaching 100,000 women of the New American Majority–Black, Brown, and Indigenous women and women of color, as well as young, LGBTQ+, and unmarried women–repowering political structures, and fostering a lift as you climb culture over the next 15 years. There are currently 27 state affiliates, and the organization has impacted a total of 45 states, Washington, D.C. and territories.