Fenton has worked with the Democratic Association of Secretaries of State (DASS) since early 2021, joining the organization before it had permanent staff or any communications infrastructure. Back then, the once little-known positions of Secretaries of State had emerged as the some of most consequential races in the country with election deniers supported by a vengeful Donald Trump vying for the power to overrule the will of the people. DASS still had a steep hill to climb to ramp up a burgeoning organization and break through a media ecosystem laser focused on congressional and statewide contests.

What ultimately became a record-breaking 2022 election cycle for DASS resulted in an unforeseen challenge for the 2024 cycle: a stunningly complacent media and Beltway landscape that took 2022’s wins for democracy for granted, resulting in significantly decreased interest in discussions on very real threats to elections. Both in 2023 and 2024, it took the mainstream media far too long to cover Donald Trump as the existential threat he was, including his plans to successfully overturn election results this time should he lose again.

Fenton first focused on setting up the fundamentals: a proper communications operation and increased visibility tactics for DASS, its new Chair Secretary Griswold, and the office at large. We raised the alarm on election deniers running for the office, test-drove a “democracy is on the ballot” message and brought the spotlight on threats to election officials. As we got deeper in the 2022 cycle, we doubled down on tactics to keep Secretary of State races center stage in a crowded midterms field while defining our nominees as competent protectors of democracy and the freedoms that depend on it — including abortion — and their opponents as extremist agents of chaos.

After successfully framing the midterms as shaping the future of American democracy, we pivoted in 2023 to calling out the lack of continued democracy coverage in the face of ongoing threats while positioning Secretaries as go-to commentators on not only voting rights but political news of the day. With maintained influence and visibility going into 2024, we zeroed in on issues like online disinformation about elections, political threats and violence, and efforts to combat Trump’s resurgence as a criminal candidate to create our own DASS-driven media moments — all while boosting candidates in critical states like North Carolina.

In the consequential 2022 cycle, we successfully convinced editors and reporters to view Secretary of State races as paramount – securing over 200 print and broadcast placements in under 12 months to dominate the national conversation, elevate the issue of democracy and connect our candidates to the American public. As the political director of ABC News pointed out: “Just months ago, DASS was nowhere to be found – but thanks to Fenton – Democratic Secretaries are everywhere with no matching effort on the Republican side” Our work helped activate supporters for pro-democracy candidates, fueling DASS’ record $30 million fundraising haul and wins against election deniers in every single swing state. In 2024, we helped DASS keep democracy as a priority issue for voters, re-elect every incumbent, including in the all-important swing state of North Carolina, and position the organization to combat a second Trump term.