Jamal Nkosi Simmons is an American political advisor who formerly served as the communications director for Vice President

Kamala Harris Kamala Devi Harris ( ; born October 20, 1964) is an American politician and attorney who is the 49th vice president of the United States. She is the first female vice president and the highest-ranking female official in U.S. history, as well ...

from January 2022 to January 2023.

Early life and education

A native of

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...

, Simmons attended

Cass Technical High School Cass Technical High School (simply referred to as Cass Tech) is a public high school in Midtown Detroit, Michigan, United States.

. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in history from

Morehouse College , mottoeng = And there was light (literal translation of Latin itself translated from Hebrew: "And light was made") , type = Private historically black men's liberal arts college , academic_affiliations ...

and a

Master of Public Policy The Master of Public Policy (MPP), is one of several public policy degrees. An MPP is a master's-level professional degree that provides training in policy analysis and program evaluation at public policy schools. The MPP program places a focu ...

from the

Harvard Kennedy School The Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), officially the John F. Kennedy School of Government, is the school of public policy and government of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school offers master's degrees in public policy, publi ...

Career

Simmons worked for Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick and served as an advisor to

Max Cleland Joseph Maxwell Cleland (August 24, 1942 – November 9, 2021) was an American politician from Georgia. A member of the Democratic Party, he was a disabled U.S. Army veteran of the Vietnam War, a recipient of the Silver Star and the Bronze Star ...

. In 1992, Simmons worked as a press assistant on the

Bill Clinton 1992 presidential campaign The 1992 presidential campaign of Bill Clinton, then the governor of Arkansas, was announced on October 3, 1991, at the Old State House in Little Rock, Arkansas. After winning a majority of delegates in the Democratic primaries of 1992, the ca ...

. From 1993 to 1995, he served as a press assistant in the

Office of the United States Trade Representative The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) is an agency of the United States federal government responsible for developing and promoting American trade policy. Part of the Executive Office of the President, it is headed by the ...

. In 1996 and 1997, he served as a special assistant to Commerce Secretary Mickey Kantor. He also worked in the Office of Scheduling and Advance. After leaving the

Clinton administration Bill Clinton's tenure as the 42nd president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 1993, and ended on January 20, 2001. Clinton, a Democrat from Arkansas, took office following a decisive election victory over ...

, Simmons briefly worked at

Citigroup Citigroup Inc. or Citi ( stylized as citi) is an American multinational investment bank and financial services corporation headquartered in New York City. The company was formed by the merger of banking giant Citicorp and financial conglomera ...

and

United Technologies United Technologies Corporation (UTC) was an American multinational conglomerate headquartered in Farmington, Connecticut. It researched, developed, and manufactured products in numerous areas, including aircraft engines, aerospace systems, ...

. In 1999 and 2000, he served as chief of staff for Congresswoman Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick. He also worked as deputy communications director for the

Al Gore 2000 presidential campaign The 2000 presidential campaign of Al Gore, the 45th vice president of the United States under President Bill Clinton, began when he announced his candidacy for the presidency of the United States in Carthage, Tennessee, on June 16, 1999. ...

. He later worked as deputy director of communications for the

Democratic National Committee The Democratic National Committee (DNC) is the governing body of the United States Democratic Party. The committee coordinates strategy to support Democratic Party candidates throughout the country for local, state, and national office, as well ...

and communications director for

's 2002 re-election campaign for the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and po ...

. Simmons then worked as press secretary for the Bob Graham 2004 presidential campaign and traveling press secretary for the Wesley Clark 2004 presidential campaign. He was a senior vice president at the Walker Marchant Group before establishing his own consulting firm. Simmons was also a principal at the Raben Group. He has been featured as a political commentator for

CBS News CBS News is the news division of the American television and radio service CBS. CBS News television programs include the '' CBS Evening News'', '' CBS Mornings'', news magazine programs '' CBS News Sunday Morning'', '' 60 Minutes'', and '' 4 ...

NPR National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...

MSNBC MSNBC (originally the Microsoft National Broadcasting Company) is an American news-based pay television cable channel. It is owned by NBCUniversala subsidiary of Comcast. Headquartered in New York City, it provides news coverage and political ...

, CNN, and ''The Hill''. In 2009, Washington Life magazine named Simmons as one of its most influential people under 40.

Personal life

Simmons married Lynn Monique Jollivette in 1998 and they divorced in 2000. He married Jewel James in 2016. They reside in Washington, D.C., with their son and daughter.

References

External links

Jamal Simmons on Being a Good Man in Politics

Is Trump Succeeding At Dividing The Democratic Party?
{{DEFAULTSORT:Simmons, Jamal Living people People from Detroit Cass Technical High School alumni Morehouse College alumni Harvard Kennedy School alumni Clinton administration personnel Biden administration personnel Year of birth missing (living people)