Poersch, McKenna to Stay at DSCC

Posted December 17, 2008 at 2:29pm

Updated: 4:43 p.m.

Sen. Bob Menendez (N.J.), the incoming Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee Chairman, has scored his first recruiting victories of the 2010 election cycle — retaining two of the committee’s most senior aides who helped the Democrats win at least seven Senate seats on Nov. 4.

Executive Director J.B. Poersch and Political Director Martha McKenna have chosen to re-up for another tour at the DSCC. The two strategists spent the 2008 cycle in their respective roles serving under outgoing DSCC Chairman Charles Schumer (N.Y.).

In addition to Poersch and McKenna, DSCC Research Director Matt McNally has also signed on for another cycle.

“I am thrilled to have the seasoned team that led such a successful cycle in 2008 back to help us strengthen our Democratic majority in 2010,” Menendez said in a statement.

Finance Director Tom Lopach is departing, but his successor has not yet been hired. Lopach helped the DSCC raise $136 million during the 2008 cycle, a record for the committee.

This will actually be Poersch’s third cycle at the helm of the Senate Democrats’ campaign arm. He became executive director at the DSCC at the beginning of 2005, when Schumer first assumed the committee job. He was formerly chief of staff to Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.).

The DSCC once again faces a favorable election map in the 2010 cycle, although not to the extent that it did last cycle. In the 2008 elections, 22 Republican seats were up, compared with 12 for the Democrats. In 2010, 19 GOP seats are up, compared with at least 17 Democratic seats.