Mike Schmuhl

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Mike Schmuhl
Chair of the Indiana Democratic Party
Assumed office
March 20, 2021
Preceded byJohn Zody
Chief of Staff to the Mayor of South Bend, Indiana
In office
January, 2012 – May, 2013
MayorPete Buttigieg
Succeeded byKathryn Roos[1]
Personal details
Born1983 (age 40–41)
South Bend, Indiana, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
EducationUniversity of Notre Dame (BA)
Sciences Po (MA)

Michael Schmuhl is an American political figure serving as the chair of the Indiana Democratic Party. Schmuhl previously managed the Pete Buttigieg 2020 presidential campaign. Schmuhl worked for more than a year as Buttigieg's chief of staff during Buttigieg's South Bend, Indiana mayoralty. Schmuhl has also been involved in the private sector.

Early life and education[edit]

Schmuhl was born and raised in South Bend, Indiana. His father is Robert Schmuhl, an emeritus professor of American Studies at the University of Notre Dame. Schmuhl went to high school at St. Joseph High School,[2][3] where he befriended a young Pete Buttigieg.[4][3] Their fathers were also friends, both working as professors at Notre Dame.[5]

He graduated from University of Notre Dame in 2005 with a bachelor's degree in history.[2] His uncle William Schmuhl, has also taught at the university.[6] He later received a master's degree in international affairs from the Paris Institute of Political Studies.[7]

Career[edit]

In 2004, Schmuhl was an intern at Meet the Press with Tim Russert at NBC News in Washington, D.C. He then worked at The Washington Post, where he was a producer and booker in the newsroom.[3]

He returned to Indiana in 2009 and managed Joe Donnelly's 2010 successful congressional reelection campaign.[3][4][8][9][2]

Schmuhl reconnected with his high school friend Pete Buttigieg,[4] and managed his 2011 campaign for Mayor of South Bend, Indiana.[2][4][8][9]

In October 2011, after Butch Morgan resigned from his role as Democratic chairman for Indiana's 2nd congressional district, Schmuhl agreed to run for the position.[9] He was elected to the position in November in a vote of by the county chairs and vice chairs from the counties of the district.[2]

When Buttigieg assumed the office of mayor in January 2012, he named Schmuhl as his chief of staff.[3] Schmuhl stepped down from this position in May 2013.[3] He resigned from the job in order to pursue a master's degree at Sciences Po in Paris, France.[7]

Schmuhl returned to the United States in 2015 and began working at the Democratic consulting firm 270 Strategies in Chicago.[10]

Schmuhl advised Indiana congressional candidates Shelli Yoder and Mel Hall in 2016 and 2018, respectively, and he also served as treasurer of Buttigieg's hybrid PAC, Hitting Home PAC.[7][11]

Schmuhl was campaign manager for Buttigieg's 2020 presidential campaign.[4][6] Pete for America was the largest political campaign in Indiana history.[12] Buttigieg became the first openly LGBTQ+ person to win presidential primary delegates and the first openly LGBTQ+ person to become a Senate-confirmed Cabinet secretary in American history.[13]

Schmuhl has worked as a venture capitalist.[14] After Buttigieg's campaign, Schmuhl began working at Heartland Ventures, a small venture capital firm located in South Bend.[15][16] Schmuhl and a business partner also acquired Joe's Tavern, a historic bar in South Bend.[16][17]

In 2021, Schmuhl successfully ran to succeed John Zody as chairman of the Indiana Democratic Party.[16] Zody had opted against seeking a third four-year term as state party leader.[14] On March 20, 2021, Schmuhl won the vote by the state central committee to be the state party chair, electing him to a four-year term as state party chairman.[16] He defeated Morgan County Democratic Party leader Tom Wallace, his sole opponent after Trish Whitcomb withdrew days before the vote citing to her son's death.[14] In addition, Myla Eldridge, who Schmuhl had chosen as his running mate by expressing his preference for her as state party vice chair, was elected by the state central committee to the position of vice chair in a separate vote.[16] As chair, Schmuhl has received media attention for working to revive the Democratic Party in Indiana through a series of tours and for working to combat Republican misinformation and disinformation.[18]

Schmuhl joined LangleyCyber, a cybersecurity firm, in October 2021.[19] His title is Partner and Head of Political.[20] In 2022, Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chairman Jaime Harrison appointed Schmuhl to the DNC's executive committee.[21]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Blasko, Erin (June 23, 2015). "South Bend mayor's chief of staff to step down". South Bend Tribune. Retrieved 3 August 2023.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Schmuhl elected as Second District chairman". The Michigan City News Dispatch. 15 November 2011. Retrieved 17 September 2019.
  3. ^ a b c d e f Erin, Blasko (31 March 2019). "Mike Schmuhl leaving as mayor's chief of staff". South Bend Tribune. Retrieved 2 March 2020.
  4. ^ a b c d e Peoples, Steve; Woodall, Hunter (22 April 2019). "Pete Buttigieg scrambles to turn 2020 buzz into momentum". AP NEWS. Associated Press. Retrieved 2 March 2020.
  5. ^ Colwell, Jack (December 5, 2020). "If Not Mayor Luecke, then who?". South Bend Tribune. Retrieved 15 November 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ a b "Meet the lobbyists and special interests who helped launch Pete Buttigieg's political career". Center for Public Integrity. 8 August 2019. Retrieved 2 March 2020.
  7. ^ a b c Laviola, Erin (26 March 2019). "Pete Buttigieg's Campaign Staff: 5 Fast Facts". Heavy.com. Retrieved 2 March 2020.
  8. ^ a b Colwell, Jack (5 May 2011). "Buttigieg wins an impressive primary" (PDF). Howey Politics Indiana. 16 (34). Retrieved 15 September 2019.
  9. ^ a b c Colwell, Jack (27 October 2011). "Butch Morgan says 'I had no clue'" (PDF). Howey Politics Indiana. 17 (11). Retrieved 15 September 2019.
  10. ^ Schneider, Elena (23 December 2019). "How Buttigieg's childhood pal ended up managing 2020's breakout campaign". POLITICO. Retrieved 22 March 2020.
  11. ^ Robillard, Kevin (26 November 2019). "Pete Buttigieg's PAC Was Supposed To Help Elect Democrats. It Mostly Touted Him". HuffPost. Retrieved 27 November 2019.
  12. ^ "Meet the Chair". Indiana Democratic Party. Retrieved 1 May 2022.
  13. ^ "Secretary Pete Buttigieg Makes History As First Openly LGBTQ, Senate-Confirmed Person to Lead a Department". Human Rights Campaign. 2 February 2021. Retrieved 1 May 2022.
  14. ^ a b c Smith, Brandon (March 20, 2021). "Mike Schmuhl Will Lead Indiana Democratic Party". Indiana Public Media. Retrieved 21 February 2024.
  15. ^ Colwell, Jack (5 July 2020). "Colwell: A look back at Mayor Pete's long-shot presidential campaign". South Bend Tribune. Retrieved 21 December 2020.
  16. ^ a b c d e Dits, Joseph (20 March 2021). "Mike Schmuhl, former Buttigieg campaign manager, to lead Indiana Democratic Party". South Bend Tribune. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
  17. ^ Toper, Onur (18 February 2021). "Organizer-In-Chief: How Mike Schmuhl ascended to the national stage". saintjosephsquare.com. The Square (St. Joseph's High School). Retrieved 6 June 2021.
  18. ^ Balz, Dan. "For Democrats, flipping red states is hard. Ask this state chair". Washington Post. Retrieved 1 May 2022.
  19. ^ Sabin, Sam. "Weekly Cybersecurity". Politico. Retrieved 1 May 2022.
  20. ^ "Mike Schmuhl". Langley Cyber. Retrieved 21 February 2024.
  21. ^ Wren, Adam (7 November 2022). "A potential bright spot for Dems in Indiana". Politico. Retrieved 21 February 2024.
Party political offices
Preceded by Chair of the Indiana Democratic Party
2021–present 		Incumbent
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