Politico's new head of communications is a longtime House Democratic operative who boasted of "knocking on doors for Democrats" at the age of six and called President Donald Trump's first term an "unmitigated disaster."
The operative, Evan Hollander, spent nearly four years as the executive director of the House Democratic Policy and Communications Committee, which works to craft "a strong Caucus-wide message that forcefully communicates where House Democrats stand and sharply contrasts that with the extreme policies of House Republicans." Before that, he was communications director for Democrats in the House Appropriations Committee and policy adviser to Rep. Betty McCollum (D., Minn.), according to his LinkedIn. Now, he will serve as Politico's senior vice president of communications.
"I'm really excited to move into the news media," Hollander told the media newsletter Breaker. "My dad was a journalist, and I was a nerd reading the paper in middle school. I used Politico Pro for all my work on the Hill and really understand how indispensable it is, so I'm excited to join the organization."
Hollander was indeed familiar with Politico while working as a Democratic flack. He was the outlet's "Birthday of the Day" on Sept. 26, 2020, and used the Q&A that came with the honor to tout his liberal bona fides and attack Trump's presidency.
"My dad started me knocking on doors for Democrats when I was about 6," Hollander said, "but my first paid political job came on Alison Lundergan Grimes' 2014 U.S. Senate campaign." It was a tough start for Hollander: Democrats touted the race as a rare opportunity to take out an unpopular Sen. Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.), who went on to trounce Grimes by more than 15 points.
Politico also asked Hollander to assess Trump's presidency. "From the dystopian 'American carnage' speech on day one to more than 200,000 Americans dead from Covid-19 on day 1,344, it's been an unmitigated disaster," said Hollander. "But the beauty of our democracy is that we can make a change in 38 days." Around the same time, when Trump moved to cut federal funding for cities plagued by Black Lives Matter riots, Hollander told ABC News, "Instead of doing his job and helping heal our nation, President Trump is once again stoking division in search of political gain."
Hollander's new role comes amid uncertain times at Politico. The outlet has faced substantial staff cuts and departures over the last year, while Politico founder and editor in chief John Harris announced last week that he would step back from his editorial role. That means Hollander will be tasked with messaging the hire of Politico's new top editor.
"It's how they treat people," one former Politico staffer told the media newsletter Status of the outlet's staffing woes. "Every single reporter that has left that place in the past year or two has a horror story about dealing with the POLITICO leadership."
Hollander's anti-Trump rhetoric will fit in well at Politico. Four months ago, in September, the outlet hired a breaking news reporter, Cheyenne Daniels, who revealed that she cried when Trump was elected because she knew "horrible things were to come," the Washington Free Beacon reported. Daniels regularly covers Trump and his administration.
Politico did not immediately respond to a request for comment. It has yet to formally announce Hollander's arrival.
