Former Missouri Secretary of State and unsuccessful 2016 Democratic Senate candidate Jason Kander has hired Des Moines Register "Reality Check" reporter Jason Noble as communications director for his organization.
Noble will direct national communications strategy for Kander himself and for Let America Vote, which is dedicated to pushing back on voting restrictions on the state level, Politico reports.
Kander has become a larger force in the Democratic Party despite his loss in 2016 to Sen. Roy Blunt (R., Mo.). His frequent visits to New Hampshire and Iowa, and his hiring of a major reporter from the biggest newspaper in Iowa, have fueled speculation he is considering a 2020 presidential run. On Noble's hiring, Politico reported:
The move comes as prospective Democratic presidential candidates begin to staff up ahead of the 2020 primary, slotting campaign veterans into positions on official office, reelection and advocacy group payrolls. Noble’s job will include speechwriting for Kander.
Noble’s hiring offers Kander, 36, an inroad to the most prominent daily newspaper in Iowa, while adding to his already significant footprint in the first-in-the-nation caucus state. Though a national group, Let America Vote’s executive director, Abe Rakov, and press secretary Austin Laufersweiler are based in Des Moines.
In an interview, Noble said he's joining Let America Vote because he "believes in its mission" and describes its efforts as "really important work for our political system and for our democracy right now."
Kander said in a statement that Noble is "one of the most talented political reporters in the country."
While at the Register, Noble introduced himself as the "Reality Check" reporter with the headline: "Politicians, beware: The Register is checking your facts."
Last August, Noble wrote a story about Kander and Rep. Eric Swalwell (D., Calif.) titled "2 years before the caucuses, Democratic upstarts are trying to make a name in Iowa."