Ben Wikler

He led the organization's efforts to encourage Elizabeth Warren to run for President, putting him at odds with friend and prominent progressive Howard Dean who endorsed Hillary Clinton. Dean declined to criticize the effort and Wikler, saying, "I appreciate you trying to pick a fight between Ben and I [sic]. I happen to know Ben, and he’s one of the smartest people under 35 in the entire country."

Wikler announced his campaign for chair of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin (DPW) on February 21, 2019, running on a slate with Felesia Martin and Lee Snodgrass. On June 2, 2019, Wikler was elected chair of DPW. He received 1,006 votes, beating opposing candidate state Rep. David Bowen who earned 233 votes.

Since assuming office, Wikler has emphasized that "Wisconsin is not only a necessary state, but may be the necessary state to stop Trump and elect a Democratic president." He's also highlighted DPW's focus on grassroots organizing: "Unlike almost any other state party in the country, we have a field team of organizers working across Wisconsin to build neighborhood teams and work with county parties to get volunteers out on doors." As of September 3, 2019, DPW's team includes 13 field organizers in every region of the state.

In 2017, Wikler led grassroots protests against the attempted repeal of the Affordable Care Act, helping contribute to the Senate's failure to pass the ACA-repealing American Health Care Act of 2017.

The podcast is currently on hiatus. In a letter to his supporters dated 21 February 2016, Wikler cites family needs as the reason for ceasing production of the podcast, and offers to return Kickstarter funds to any supporter who requests it.

In late 2015 Wikler led MoveOn's advocacy on behalf of Syrian immigrants, helping to organize and coordinate efforts by a number of nonprofit groups.

Wikler became MoveOn.org's Washington director in early 2014.

In November 2013, Wikler relaunched his show as The Good Fight, a podcast and radio program sponsored by MoveOn.org. The show's first episode featured Senator Al Franken and reached the #1 spot on the U.S. iTunes podcast charts. The Good Fight is an hour-long weekly podcast and radio show that, according to its website, "brings you a mix of comedy, activism, and David versus Goliath battles told from the behind-the-slingshot point of view.

In January 2012, Wikler and Aaron Swartz launched a radio show and podcast, The Flaming Sword of Justice, on We Act Radio WPWC 1480 AM in Washington DC, in which he interviews other campaigners from the U.S. and around the world. Guests have included Ricken Patel, Zack Exley, and Eli Pariser.

In March 2007, he became Campaign Director for Avaaz, where he helped grow the organization to over ten million members. As Campaign Director, he ran campaigns on climate change, poverty, human rights, and other issues, as well as managed the technology and communication teams. He also hosted the Fossil of the Day Awards at UN climate negotiations from 2007-2009 for the Climate Action Network. In late 2011, Wikler became the Executive Vice President of Change.org.

In 2006, Wikler served as press secretary for Sherrod Brown's U.S. Senate campaign and was the first editor-in-chief of Comedy 23/6, a comedy news website created as a coproduction of the Huffington Post and IAC.

In 1999, he began attending Harvard University, where he studied economics. While a student, he cofounded the Student Global AIDS Campaign (SGAC) and the Harvard AIDS Coalition. He represented the SGAC at the United Nations General Assembly Special Session on AIDS in New York, the UN World Youth Forum in Senegal, and the International AIDS Conference in Barcelona. He also worked for economist Jeffrey Sachs and interned for Russ Feingold. He also served as editor-in-chief of the Harvard Review of Philosophy and contributed to The Onion.

Benjamin McDonald Wikler (born February 3, 1981) is an American politician who was elected on June 2, 2019 as the chair of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin. Wikler is a former Senior Advisor at MoveOn.