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Tom Vellenga , President, served as senior advisor on national security to then-White House Chief of Staff Leon Panetta and as a senior advisor on environmental cleanup, health, and safety to then-Secretary of Energy Federico Peña during the Clinton Administration. Most recently, he administered and launched public programs at the University of Minnesota’s Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs. Previously, he was executive director at the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy and a senior Congressional liaison at the Agency for International Development. Earlier, he directed then-Congressman Panetta's (CA) legislative staff after serving on the staffs of U.S. Senators Paul Sarbanes (MD) and Thomas Eagleton (MO). A product of St. Paul’s public schools, he is a regular guest speaker at the Humphrey Institute, houses of worship, and other public and private forums. He earned his M.A. in international relations and international economics at the School for Advanced International Studies (SAIS) at The Johns Hopkins University and his B.A. at Williams College.

Erin Sapp, Election Reform Project Director, is also a Project Manager for the Citizens League, overseeing a redistricting reform initiative as well as the development of the first-ever civic networking platform, CitiZing!. She has also served as the Project Director for the League of Women Voters’ State of Democracy project in Minnesota. Previously, she was the Associate Director for the Responsible Credit Partnership, a special project of the Saint Paul Foundation, she managed its national college credit score awareness campaign. She has also worked with the Center for Financial Services Innovation, Visa USA, the City of Edina, and Payne Lake Community Partners. Earlier, she served in the British Parliament, the Minnesota Senate, and as a field organizer in Iowa for the Kerry campaign during the general election. Raised in Beatrice, Nebraska, she earned a master’s degree with merit (honors) in social policy at the London School of Economics and a B.A. at Gustavus Adolphus College.

Kim Couch, Financial Manager, handles Heartland Democracy’s finances as a contractor.  By day, he is Finance and Benefits Manager for Wellstone Action and Wellston Action Fund. 

Peter Fleck, Fellow, is a consultant on worldwide web matters and wireless networks as well as a web manager at the University of Minnesota.