Councilman John Taylor Chapman to Attend Nation’s Largest Summit for Young Elected Leaders

Will Join Progressive Elected Officials in San Francisco

This week Alexandria City Councilman, John Taylor Chapman, will meet with fellow elected officials and national leaders in San Francisco at the 12th annual National Convening of People For the American Way Foundation’s Young Elected Officials Network.

At the convention, which is the largest gathering of young elected leaders in the country, Chapman will participate in issue-based training sessions with nearly 100 fellow progressive elected officials from across the nation to learn best practices for resistance at the state and local level, and create proactive strategies to bring back to all 50 states.

Chapman, 35, was elected to City Council in 2012 and has been a member of the Young Elected Officials Network since July 2013.

He will bring his own unique perspective to the summit, sharing his experience working for housing affordability. “I look forward to participating in the YEO Convening each year as a way to expand my knowledge about progressive policies and community-best practices that could be useful in Alexandria”, said Chapman. “The YEO Network has been extremely helpful in my growth as a policymaker and the Convening is the perfect opportunity to re-energize during the city council recess, and be ready to come back in September eager to work on many of the local issues facing the council this upcoming session.”

The Young Elected Officials (YEO) Network, a project of People for the American Way Foundation, is the first and only national initiative to provide a network of support to the newest generation of progressive leaders at every level of elected office. Over the last decade, the YEO Network has grown to more than 1,000 members in every state and at every level of office.

The YEO Network is a cutting-edge program investing in the pipeline of progressive leadership and building sustained relationships with its members. It provides the resources young elected officials need to effectively impact policy, foster their own development and professional growth, and elevate their voices and their leadership in the broader progressive movement.

At the convening, young elected officials will discuss policy solutions on topics ranging from climate change to criminal justice reform. Attendees will hear from distinguished speakers including:

• Tom Steyer, Founder & President of NextGen Climate

• Alicia Garza, co-founder of Black Lives Matter

• Khizr Khan, Gold Star father

“We are proud to come to San Francisco to honor the work our members are doing in their communities,” said Svante Myrick, Ithaca, NY Mayor and director of youth leadership programs at People for the American Way Foundation. “At this moment in our country’s history, it is more important than ever to organize and create opportunities for strategizing and innovation in the progressive movement. Our members are on the front lines in fighting against some of President Trump’s most harmful policies. In order to keep the resistance strong, it is critical to continue connecting young leaders to build a progressive agenda in communities across the country.”