Sherrill names top staffers

Ethan Saxon, a former deputy chief of staff to U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Connecticut) will serve as chief of staff to Rep.-elect Mikie Sherrill (D-Montclair) when she takes office on January 3.

Sherrill has also named three campaign staffers to top posts on her congressional staff.

Jackie Burns will serve as communications director, Kellie Doucette will handle outreach for Morris and Sussex counties, and Jill Hirsch will run case work and constituent services for Essex and Passaic.

“We’re building a team of skilled, passionate, and committed people who are dedicated to serving the people of our community,” said Sherrill.  “I’m thrilled to have Ethan (Saxon) join our team and to have Jill (Hirsch), Kellie (Doucette), and Jackie (Burns), who played such vital roles during our campaign, continue their work on behalf of the 11th District.”

Burns spent five years working for the House of Representatives’ Office of the Historian before joining the Sherrill campaign in 2017 as communications director.

Doucette spent fifteen years as a healthcare policy analyst and healthcare actuary before becoming involved in New Jersey politics.  She was Sherrill’s constituency director.

Hirsch was the political and outreach director for the Sherrill 2018 race and previously worked as a law guardian at the Legal Aid Society in New York.

Saxton served as Democratic staff director of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee and was a legislative assistant to Rep. Jim Maloney (D-Connecticut) and Madeleine Bordallo (D-Guam).  He worked as an analyst for the Commission on the National Guard and Reserves and the 2005 Base Closure and Realignment Commission.