Katherine Joan Bedingfield (born October 29, 1981) is an American political advisor who served as the

White House Communications Director The White House communications director or White House director of communications, also known officially as Assistant to the President for Communications, is part of the senior staff of the president of the United States. The officeholder is resp ...

in the

Biden administration Joe Biden's tenure as the List of presidents of the United States, 46th president of the United States began with Inauguration of Joe Biden, his inauguration on January 20, 2021, and ended on January 20, 2025. Biden, a member of the Democr ...

from 2021 to 2023. She previously served as deputy

campaign manager A campaign manager, campaign chairperson, or campaign director is an individual whose role is to coordinate a political campaign's spending, broad tactics, and hiring. They lead operations such as Campaign finance, fundraising, advertising, Opi ...

for the

Joe Biden 2020 presidential campaign On April 25, 2019, former vice president Joe Biden released a video announcing his candidacy in the 2020 Democratic Party presidential primaries. On November 3, 2020, Biden and his running mate, Kamala Harris, defeated incumbent Republican p ...

and as communications director for Biden when he was vice president in the

Obama administration Barack Obama's tenure as the 44th president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 2009, and ended on January 20, 2017. Obama, a Democrat from Illinois, took office following his victory over Republican nomine ...

Early life and education

Kate Bedingfield was born on October 29, 1981, and raised in

Sandy Springs, Georgia Sandy Springs is a city in northern Fulton County, Georgia, United States, and a suburb of Atlanta. The city's population was 108,080 at the 2020 census, making it Georgia's 7th most populous city. It is the site of several corporate headquar ...

. Her parents are Dana H. and Sid E. Bedingfield. Her father is a journalism professor and a former

CNN Cable News Network (CNN) is a multinational news organization operating, most notably, a website and a TV channel headquartered in Atlanta. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable ne ...

executive. Her mother is a social media consultant. Bedingfield attended Sandy Springs Middle School and graduated from Riverwood High School. She earned her

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...

from the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...

Career

Career in politics

Bedingfield worked on the

John Edwards 2008 presidential campaign The 2008 presidential campaign of John Edwards, former United States Senate, United States Senator from North Carolina and Democratic Party (United States), Democratic nominee for Vice President of the United States, Vice President in 2004 United ...

as spokesperson. She also served as communications director for the 2008 senate campaign for

Jeanne Shaheen Cynthia Jeanne Shaheen ( ; née Bowers, born January 28, 1947) is an American politician and former educator serving since 2009 as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States Senate, United States senator from New Hampshire. A ...

. In 2015, Bedingfield was named communications director for then

Vice President A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vi ...

Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...

. She also held two additional roles in the

: director of response, and deputy director of media affairs. Bedingfield served as deputy

for the

. Her work on the campaign led to ''

Fortune Fortune may refer to: General * Fortuna or Fortune, the Roman goddess of luck * Luck * Wealth * Fate * Fortune, a prediction made in fortune-telling * Fortune, in a fortune cookie Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''The Fortune'' (19 ...

'' naming Bedingfield one of the most influential people under the age of 40 in government and politics.

Biden administration

In November 2020, Bedingfield was designated

for the

. In late July 2022, Bedingfield reversed the decision announced weeks earlier to leave her position as White House Communications Director. In February 2023, Bedingfield announced that she would leave the administration at the end of the month. Her position was filled by

Ben LaBolt Ben LaBolt (born August 20, 1981) is a political advisor who served as the White House Communications Director for President Joe Biden. He succeeded Kate Bedingfield in the role when she stepped down at the end of February 2023. In August 2024, ...

Private sector

In November 2011, Bedingfield started working at the

Motion Picture Association of America The Motion Picture Association (MPA) is an American trade association representing the Major film studios, five major film studios of the Cinema of the United States, United States, the Major film studios#Mini-majors, mini-major Amazon MGM Stud ...

(MPAA). In May 2013, Bedingfield was named spokesperson and vice president of corporate communications at the MPAA. After working in the Obama administration, Bedingfield returned briefly to sports and entertainment communications.

Personal life

Bedingfield married David Kelley Kieve on January 12, 2013, at

St. John's Episcopal Church, Lafayette Square St. John's Episcopal Church, Lafayette Square is a historic Episcopal church located at Sixteenth Street and H Street NW, in Washington, D.C., along the former Black Lives Matter Plaza. The Greek Revival building, designed by Benjamin Hen ...

in Washington, D.C. Bedingfield and Kieve have two children together. Kieve currently serves as the President of the Environmental Defense Action Fund.

External links

Kate Bedingfield's profile
from the Biden-Harris transition website * * *Bill Barrow (March 26, 2020)
"Meet the masterminds behind Biden's surge: women operatives"
from the ''

Christian Science Monitor ''The Christian Science Monitor'' (''CSM''), commonly known as ''The Monitor'', is a nonprofit news organization that publishes daily articles both in electronic format and a weekly print edition. It was founded in 1908 as a daily newspaper b ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bedingfield, Kate 1981 births 21st-century American businesswomen 21st-century American businesspeople American campaign managers American telecommunications industry businesspeople Biden administration personnel Joe Biden 2020 presidential campaign Living people Motion Picture Association people Obama administration personnel People associated with the 2008 United States presidential election People associated with the 2020 United States presidential election People from Sandy Springs, Georgia University of Virginia alumni Washington, D.C., Democrats White House communications directors