Brian Melendez

From SuperDelegates.org - Information about the 2008 DNC Superdelegates

Brian Melendez was elected as State Chair of the Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party on May 21, 2005. Melendez has been active in politics for almost two decades. Before his election, Melendez chaired both the Minneapolis DFL Party (1999–2005) and DFL Congressional District 5 (2004–05).

As State DFL Chair, Melendez leads one of the nation’s largest grassroots-based state political parties with 100,000 active supporters. He is also Minnesota’s lead representative on the Democratic National Committee (DNC).

Melendez considers himself a Democrat for two main reasons: his life experience, and his faith. When he was growing up, his family lived in a trailer park in a national forest. But because of the Great Society’s federally funded student-loan program, his future wasn’t limited by his family’s finances, but was instead shaped by his educational opportunities. He wants that same opportunity for every child.

Melendez earned his bachelor’s degree with honors from Harvard College in 1986, writing his senior honors thesis on “Presidential Disability and Succession”; his law degree from Harvard Law School in 1991, writing on “Districting a Diverse Society”; and a master’s degree in Theological Studies from Harvard Divinity School in 1991, concentrating in ethics.

Melendez lives in Minneapolis and is a partner at the law firm Faegre & Benson LLP, the second-largest law firm in the Upper Midwest. He was named by Minnesota Lawyer magazine in 2002 as one of the Top Ten Attorneys of the Year. He takes seriously the task of finding balance and perspective among the competing demands of his political, professional, and personal lives: a “couch potato” who watches two hours of television nightly and has read a book a week since childhood, he also runs two to three a marathons a year. Melendez is a member of Westminster Presbyterian Church in Minneapolis.

Brian Melendez can be reached at bmelendez@dfl.org

From the DFL Website

The DFL Chairman will not make an endorsement until there is a nominee.

TWO MINNESOTA SUPERDELEGATES SUPPORT BARACK OBAMA

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Categories: Delegates who endorsed Barack Obama | Minnesota | DNC Members