2026 Ideas Summit Speakers

  • Marcus Bass

    Executive Director | Advance Carolina

  • Sydney Batch

    Senate Democratic Leader | Raleigh, NC

  • Elizabeth Biser

    President | Biser Strategies LLC

  • Horatio Blackman, PhD.

    Vice-President of K-12 Policy | Education Reform Now

  • Matthew Blake

    Senator | Urbandale, IA

  • Chris Cooper

    Professor of Political Science | Western Carolina University

  • Janet Cowell

    Mayor | Raleigh, NC

  • Debbie Cox Bultan

    CEO | The NewDEAL

  • Andrea DeSantis, Ph.D

    Assistant Secretary for Workforce Solutions | NC Department of Commerce

  • Ryan Fecteau

    Speaker of the House | Biddeford, ME

  • Adrian Fontes

    Secretary of State | AZ

  • Rod Hickman

    Senator | Kemper, MS

  • Liz Howard

    Director of Partner Engagement, Elections & Government | Brennan Center

  • Kesha Hodge Washington

    City Councilmember | Phoenix, AZ

  • Jeff Jackson

    Attorney General | NC

  • Tom Jensen

    Executive Director | Public Policy Polling

  • Bruce Lesley

    President | First Focus on Children

  • Lori Lodes

    President | Climate Power

  • Hannah Preston

    Founder | Influence NC

  • Yadira Ramos-Herbert

    Mayor | New Rochelle, NY

  • Sam Reid

    Senior Director of Content Strategy | Magnitude Media

  • Melissa Roberts

    Founder and Executive Director | American Flood Coalition

  • Zeb Smathers

    Mayor | Canton, NC

  • Daniel Squadron

    Daniel Squadron

    Co-Founder | The States Project

  • Leonardo Williams

    Mayor | Durham, NC

  • Brad Wilson

  • Reid Wilson

    Secretary | North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality

  • Dr. Jane Flegal

    Senior Fellow | Searchlight Institute and The States Forum