President: Jordi Zapata (He/Him)
Jordi Zapata is as an Environmental Scientist and a graduate from the University of South Florida with a bachelor’s degree in Environmental Science and Policy. Jordi arrived at the Hillsborough Young Democrats after working as a campaign fellow on Darden Rice’s campaign for mayor of St. Petersburg in 2021. Afterwards he worked as a Program Fellow for Ruth’s List Florida helping to train, recruit, and elect democratic pro-choice women during the 2022 midterm election cycle. Meanwhile, Jordi volunteered on Lindsay Cross’s campaign for State House and was eventually promoted to Field Manager, helping to elect State Representative Cross to her first term for District 60.
Recently, Jordi was invited by the City of Dunedin—his hometown—to deliver the keynote speech at the annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration. He was also a panelist at the inaugural Black Heroes in American History event hosted by the North Tampa Democratic Club.
As President of the Hillsborough County Young Democrats, Jordi plans to increase membership and participation by collaborating with local Democratic clubs and organizations throughout Tampa Bay.
Vice President: Travis Holsclaw (He/Him)
Travis was born in Tennessee but grew up for the better part of his life in Tampa. After completing high school, he joined the U.S. Navy and served as a Sonar Technician on submarines. With a new desire to really help his community, he moved back to Tampa and got involved with the Young Democrats as well as volunteering in multiple positions for a local non-profit. He currently works for a local sales firm, a local political consulting firm, and a local coffee roaster. While staying involved within the community, Travis received his Associates Degree from Hillsborough Community College and received his Bachelors degree in Philosophy with a minor in Political Science at the University of South Florida. He has a polydactyl cat named Kurt after his favorite author Kurt Vonnegut.
Secretary: Conor Darken (He/Him)
Conor Darken is a lifelong native of the Tampa Bay area. He is a proud graduate of Pepin Academy High School in Tampa, and later from Lynn University in 2014. In a few words, Conor is quiet, independent, curious, focused, and smart. As a career, he would like to be working in government or working in proximity to the government where he can make positive improvements to people’s lives in his community.
“Pleasure to me is wonder-the unexplored, the unexpected, the thing that is hidden and the changeless thing that lurks behind superficial mutability.”
– HP Lovecraft
Treasurer: Bobby Kachelries (He/Him)
Bobby Kachelries worked as the director of Finance and Legal with the Lorissa Wright Campaign for Florida State House 68 during the 2022 midterms. He primarily looks forward to working in this current position as HCYD Treasurer and helping to bring some accounting experience in this new role.
Campaign Director: Jonathon Chavez (He/Him)
Jonathon Chavez is a lifelong Tampa Bay native. He interned for the district office of Representative Kathy Castor (FL-14) for two consecutive terms, after which he reinvigorated and reorganized the College Democrats at the University of South to ensure that the USF-Tampa campus played an active role in the 2022 election cycle. As president, he was a strong advocate for the rights of transgender students on campus, institutional academic freedom, and unrestricted abortion access. He helped found the student advocacy group Stand for Freedom, and coordinated activity statewide to organize several events and demonstrations on campus as a lead organizer. He graduated from USF in spring of 2023 earning dual degrees in Economics and Political Science.
Since graduating, Jonathon has remained involved with local caucuses and has maintained an interest in community advocacy, which has led him towards more directly contributing to the Hillsborough Young Dems. As Campaign Director of the Hillsborough Young Democrats, Jonathon plans to build on his experience as the President of the College Democrats at USF to drive active participation and inclusion of gen Z in the upcoming election cycle. Jonathon has a black cat named Taz (short for Tasmanian Devil) who is just as destructive as his cartoon namesake.