Sen. Bernie Sanders campaign is changing who will lead his presidential effort in the crucial primary state of New Hampshire.
The Sanders campaign confirmed Sunday that Joe Caiazzo, the campaign's New Hampshire state director since March, is leaving the position. He will take on the role of Sanders state director in Massachusetts.
Caiazzo is being replaced by Shannon Jackson, a longtime aide to the senator, according to the campaign. Jackson was campaign manager for Sanders 2018 Senate re-election campaign in Vermont. Kurt Ehrenberg, who had been serving as the Sanders campaign New Hampshire senior adviser, also confirmed Sunday he is leaving the campaign in a separate move.
"We've built a great team in NH and are in a really strong position there," Sanders campaign manager Faiz Shakir said in a statement. "The campaign is now building out our operations to include Massachusetts and Maine state directors as we increase our focus in Super Tuesday states."
Sanders has struggled this cycle to maintain the level of support that helped him to a 22-point victory in the 2016 New Hampshire primary. Sanders' campaign manager and some officials endorsing Sanders are hedging expectations about New Hampshire and deny a loss in the state would sink his candidacy.
Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Sanders' closest progressive rival among the 2020 field, has out-campaigned him in the state this year and was well ahead of Sanders in publicly building a staff in New Hampshire.
Sanders has also struggled to expand his reach in a large Democratic field that includes a slew of moderate and progressive options, some of whom are campaigning on the same ideals he championed in the 2016 race.
_ Hunter Woodall, Associated Press
