WASHINGTON/Raleigh, N.C. — Today, the Republican National Committee (RNC) in partnership with the North Carolina Republican Party (NCGOP) announced Carrie Brown will serve as state director for North Carolina. Additionally, we are announcing Bronwyn Haltom as deputy state director, Edgar Agosto as deputy state director and director of hispanic initiatives and Ryan Bonifay as data director.

“The RNC is building the largest, earliest and most data focused field program in GOP history,” said RNC Chairman Reince Priebus. “This new wave of staff will help us train our team, register voters, and meet one-on-one with activists, to build our infrastructure now in order to hand our eventual nominee a fully functional ground operation on day one.”

Brown and her team, in close coordination with the NCGOP, will lead the RNC’s field operation in the Tar Heel state for the 2016 cycle, focused on building relationships, attending community events, and registering voters in communities across the state. The RNC and NCGOP will work hand-in-hand on implementing a data-driven field program with a premium placed on training, voter registration, and peer-to-peer contact to engage and activate North Carolina’s diverse communities of voters to vote for our Republican nominee and the entire GOP ticket.

NORTH CAROLINA STAFF HIRES

Carrie Brown, State Director for North Carolina

Carrie Brown served as the RNC’s Deputy State Director in North Carolina during the successful 2014 election cycle that saw now Sen. Thom Tillis defeat then incumbent Senator Kay Hagan. Before making North Carolina her home, Carrie worked on targeted congressional and statewide races in Idaho and Pennsylvania, and provided strategic consulting services to campaigns of all levels.

Bronwyn Haltom, Deputy State Director for North Carolina

Bronwyn Haltom is an experienced political operative with a strong background in grassroots organizing and direct voter contact programs. She was a part of the successful Republican Party of Kentucky efforts to re-elect U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell in 2014, and has worked for targeted senate and gubernatorial campaigns, along with a stint at the National Republican Senatorial Committee.

Edgar Agosto, Deputy State Director and Director of Hispanic Initiatives for North Carolina

Last cycle, Edgar was the RNC’s hispanic initiative state director in North Carolina, where he was a part of the successful team that elected Thom Tillis to the U.S. Senate.  Prior to that he worked on campaigns in both Puerto Rico and Florida, accumulating decades of political experience.

Ryan Bonifay, Data Director for North Carolina

In 2014, Ryan Bonifay most recently served as Deputy Political Director and Data Director for David Perdue’s successful U.S. Senate campaign in Georgia. Raised in Winston-Salem, he has also worked on state level and congressional campaigns in Alabama and Mississippi.

Raleigh, NC – Today, RNC State Party Director Matt Pinnell and NCGOP Chairman Claude Pope announced Boots on the Ground, a joint RNC-NCGOP statewide grassroots program to defeat Kay Hagan in November and keep North Carolina Red in 2014 and beyond.

Although the official Boots on the Ground announcement was made today, RNC and NCGOP field staffers have been organizing across North Carolina for the last six months, with field offices currently open in Raleigh, Charlotte, Wilmington and Greensboro. Over the coming weeks and months, Boots on the Ground will be opening additional field offices across the state.

The RNC and NCGOP have never before established a statewide voter mobilization effort this early in an election cycle. It’s a significant investment in terms of both financial resources and manpower, and a clear signal that the RNC and NCGOP are all in to take back Kay Hagan’s Senate seat.

There are several key components of the Boots on the Ground Program:

• It is a true grassroots movement, starting at the precinct level. BOTG recruits and trains activists at the precinct level to focus on neighbor to neighbor conversations to identify and turnout supporters

• Utilizes state-of-the-art mobile app technology. The new technology allows for easier access to data for our volunteers and returns information back in real time.

• Unprecedented engagement and contact with minority communities all across North Carolina. It is part of the RNC’s Growth and Opportunity Project, which is a blueprint to expand the base of the Republican Party following the 2012 elections. Last October, the RNC launched an African-American Engagement Office in Charlotte, which has been building strong and lasting relationships with African-American communities across the state.

The Boots on the Ground team today also launched its website, www.NCBoots.com, where North Carolinians can get information on the program and sign-up to become precinct leaders.

The NCGOP also recently launched www.DefeatHagan.com, a website that gives North Carolinians the chance to pledge their vote against Hagan and provides opportunities to help the effort by becoming a volunteer or donor.

Today, Republican leaders praised the new RNC-NCGOP initiative.

RNC State Party Director Matt Pinnell:

“Boots on the Ground is the earliest and most significant get out the vote investment the RNC has ever made in North Carolina. We’re building a truly statewide grassroots network to mobilize our base and utilizing state of the art mobile technology to turnout the vote. The RNC and NCGOP are all in to defeat Kay Hagan and keep North Carolina red in November and the foreseeable future.”

RNC Committeeman Rep. David Lewis:

“The only way Republicans can gain a majority in the U.S. Senate is to win back North Carolina’s Senate seat. The NCGOP and RNC partnership will play a huge part in accomplishing that goal by reaching out to and mobilizing North Carolinians who want to move our country in a new direction.”  

RNC Committeewoman Dr. Ada M. Fisher:

“The Boots on the Ground Program will help carry Republicans to victory this November. This effort is in part aimed at forming lasting relationships with African-American, Hispanic and other communities across the state and expanding the base of the North Carolina Republican Party.”

NCGOP Chairman Claude Pope:

“The partnership between the RNC and NCGOP represents the strongest statewide get out the vote effort in our state’s history. Boots on the Ground will play a vital role in defeating Kay Hagan in November. While we’ve been mobilizing voters for months, the Hagan campaign has to build their ground game from scratch, without assistance from a N.C. Democratic Party that is in turmoil.” 

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