Lakeisha Steele Named FairVote Vice President of Federal Affairs and Partnerships

October 6, 2025 – Lakeisha Steele started today as Vice President of Federal Affairs and Partnerships at FairVote, a nonpartisan organization seeking better elections for all.

Steele brings extensive experience in federal policy and coalition-building. She previously served as Vice President of Policy at CASEL (Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning), where she led efforts to advance federal and state policies that support the social and emotional development of students. Before that, she served as Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Office of Legislation and Congressional Affairs at the U.S. Department of Education, serving as the agency’s liaison to Congress on higher education policy.

“We are deeply excited to welcome Lakeisha Steele as FairVote’s Vice President of Federal Affairs and Partnerships,” said FairVote President and CEO Meredith Sumpter. “Lakeisha is a believer that every vote must count for our democracy to be strong. She is a talented advocate with a track record of success in federal partnerships that will be a major asset to FairVote and the ranked choice voting movement.”

“I am thrilled to join FairVote as Vice President of Federal Affairs and Partnerships,” said Lakeisha Steele, FairVote Vice President of Federal Affairs and Partnerships. “I’ve spent my career fighting to ensure that every child has a chance to succeed, and that our government delivers for the American people. Strengthening our democracy to improve how we elect our leaders is a crucial part of that. At a time of increasing polarization and distrust, finding ways to lower the temperature is as important as ever. I’m ready to get to work advancing ranked choice voting and proportional representation – two of the most impactful reforms that can make government work better.”

Prior to joining the U.S. Department of Education in 2021, Steele spent eight years on Capitol Hill, most recently as Senior Education Policy Advisor on the U.S. House Committee on Education & Labor under then-Chairman Bobby Scott, where she helped shape landmark legislation including the American Rescue Plan Act, Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021, CARES Act, and SUPPORT Act. She also advanced K-12 and higher education priorities for Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici and U.S. Senator Richard J. Durbin.

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FairVote is a nonpartisan organization seeking better elections for all. We research and advance voting reforms that make democracy more functional and representative for every voter.