Incoming Speaker of the House Todd Gilbert, R-Shenandoah County, has announced his staff.
From a release from Gilbert’s office:
Jeff Walters, Legislative and District Director
Jeff Walters will continue to serve as Speaker-designee Gilbert’s Legislative and District Director, a role he has held for more than five years, monitoring and tracking Gilbert’s legislative agenda through the General Assembly while solving problems for constituents across the Northern Shenandoah Valley. He is a native of Shenandoah County.
Cecilia Damian, Director of Operations and Scheduling
Cecilia Damian most recently served as the Finance Director of the House Republican Campaign Committee assisting members and candidates fundraising efforts. Before joining the Speaker-designee’s office, she was Finance Director for Former Speaker Kirk Cox’s gubernatorial campaign. A Minnesota native, Damian set records for fundraising for a Congressional campaign with Congresswoman Ashley Hinson from IA-01, and held leadership positions on other congressional and gubernatorial campaigns.
J. Garren Shipley, Director of Communications
Garren Shipley is a long-time Republican communicator, having spent years working with both the Republican Party of Virginia and the Republican National Committee as their spokesman for the Commonwealth. Before shifting to politics, he accumulated a decade of experience as an award-winning journalist working for numerous publications in Virginia and Tennessee.
Lindsay Fisher, Senior Policy Advisor and Counsel
Lindsay Fisher is an attorney with nearly 15 years of experience advising policymakers, candidates, businesses, and other organizations on complex legal, policy, and political questions. Her previous experience includes work as an Associate at an AmLaw100 top ten law firm and serving on former House Speaker Kirk Cox’s gubernatorial campaign as well as in his House of Delegates office. A native of Enon, Lindsay previously served as Chair of the Virginia Advisory Committee on Juvenile Justice & Prevention.
Dean Goodson, Chief of Staff
Dean Goodson has overseen the House Republican Caucus’ operation for the last two years, including the political operation this last cycle in which Republicans ran a record number of candidates and regained the majority in the House, despite being outspent by Democrats by a wide margin. Dean’s understanding of the legislature spans many years, having worked for both Speaker Kirk Cox and Delegate Tim Hugo.