Graham Derfner is a native New Yorker and graduate of Trinity School. He earned his Bachelor of Arts in English, Creative Writing from Northwestern University.

In 2018, Graham joined the JB for Governor campaign as the field organizer for Rock Island County, a role that culminated in coordinating a Get Out the Vote effort of 100 canvass shifts and 3,300 doors knocked on Election Day. He then returned to Chicago to lead the field operation for Marianne Lalonde’s 46th ward aldermanic race in the 2019 municipal elections, helping increase vote share from 18.1% to 49.9% between the general and run-off elections.

Later that year, Graham joined the digital organizing team at Biden for President in the Philadelphia HQ. He finished the 2020 election cycle at the DNC, working to organize the largest distributed calls program in political history - 88 million calls to voters in sixteen battleground states to help elect President Biden and Vice President Harris.

Before joining SGR, he spent more than two years at the White House in the Office of Presidential Correspondence. As Associate Director of Engagement, he managed department staff to respond to Americans’ concerns, amplify meaningful letters to principals, invite the general public to White House events, and create content for social media. He also led all policy letter template drafting and worked closely with White House stakeholders to clear language and ensure consistent messaging.