Sarah Walker
Fellow, Elections Project
Sarah is a professional advocate, public affairs and government affairs operative who has made a career of joining political and social movements at key moments of change to define the next stage of success. Sarah brings more than 20 years of experience in advocacy campaigns, message development, corporate and non-profit legislative planning and lobbying to her work. Her expertise is in finding common ground and bipartisanship on some of the nation’s most contentious issues, including advancing criminal justice reforms and expanding access to the ballot.
Notably, Sarah led the legislative strategy for Secure Democracy from 2019 – 2021 helping to mitigate against some of the most restrictive elections policy legislation in Texas, Georgia, Florida, and Arizona and securing critical wins for bipartisan elections policy in Kentucky, Texas, Connecticut, Iowa, and Washington.
Sarah is the founder of the MN Second Chance Coalition and co-founder of the MN Restore the Vote Coalition. Sarah is a trained spokesperson and has been a regular contributor to local and national radio and television networks. Sarah is a graduate of Carleton College. She brings extensive research experience to issues of politics, philanthropy, criminal justice reform and the role of philanthropic organizations in setting interest group agendas.
Sarah’s public policy work has received many accolades. She received the 2010 Minnesota Council of Non-Profits Statewide Advocacy Award; 2010 Hennepin County Bar Association Advancing Justice Award; and 2010, 2011, 2012, and 2014 winner of the Politics in Minnesota’s Leaders in Public Policy Award. In 2016 she was named 40 under 40 by Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal and in 2017 she received the Ramsey County Bar Associations Liberty Bell Award. In 2018 the Minnesota Democratic Party awarded Sarah the Joan Growe award for Distinguished Commitment to Expanding Access to Democracy and Justice in Minnesota. Most recently Sarah joined the inaugural cohort of the Brewer Fellowship for Democracy and Justice.