Odus Evbagharu is an American politician. He was the chair of the Harris County Democratic Party in Houston, Texas.[1] Evbagharu now serves as Chief of Staff for Texas State Representative Jon Rosenthal.[2]

Odus Evbagharu
Chair of the Harris County Democratic Party
Assumed office
June 27, 2021
Preceded byLillie Schechter
Personal details
Born
Odus E. Evbagharu

(1992-07-18) July 18, 1992 (age 31)
Political partyDemocratic
Residence(s)Houston, Texas, U.S.
Alma materUniversity of Houston
Websitehttps://odusevbagharu.com/

County Democratic Chairman edit

On June 27, 2021, Evbagharu was elected Chairman of the Democratic Party in Harris County, Texas — the third largest county in the U.S.[3] He is the youngest and the first Black chair of the Harris County Democratic Party (HCDP).[4] Evbagharu replaced Lillie Schechter, who served as HCDP Chair between 2017 and 2021.[5]

Background edit

Evbagharu was born in London, England, to Nigerian-born parents, Felix and Patience Evbagharu. He has one sister and one brother. Evbagharu moved to America with his family when he was five years old and Houston when he was 10. Evbagharu became a U.S. citizen in 2005.[6] In Houston, Evbagharu grew up in the suburbs of Cypress and attended school in the Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District. He attended the University of Houston and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in political science in 2018.

Political life edit

Evbagharu worked for the Harris County Democratic Party between 2017 and 2018, first as a Communications Fellow, then as Communications Director and Candidate Coordinator. He was the campaign manager for Eliz Markowitz in her 2019-2020 special election race for Texas House District 28. Evbagharu joined Texas Rep. Jon Rosenthal’s team as political director in January 2018 and in November of that year became Rosenthal’s Chief of Staff.[7] Evbagharu serves on the board of directors for the Texas Freedom Network,[8] on the steering committee for Planned Parenthood Young Leaders, and was formerly a board member of the New Leaders Council.

References edit

  1. ^ "Congratulations to newly elected Chairman of Harris Democrats, Odus Evbagharu!". Archived from the original on 2021-06-28. Retrieved 2022-01-22.
  2. ^ "Texas State Directory". Texas State Directory. Texas State Directory Press. Archived from the original on 2022-02-19. Retrieved 2022-02-19.
  3. ^ Gill, Julian (2021-06-27). "Harris County Democratic Party elects first African-American chair". Houston Chronicle. Archived from the original on 2021-07-03. Retrieved 2022-02-19.
  4. ^ Montoya Coggins, Jessica (2021-07-07). "Odus Evbagharu, the New Chair for the Harris County Democrats, is Ready to Get to Work". Texas Signal. Archived from the original on 2021-07-07. Retrieved 2022-02-19.
  5. ^ Scherer, Jasper (2021-06-28). "New Harris County Dem Chair Evbagharu inherits party in strong position, but threats loom". Houston Chronicle. Archived from the original on 2021-07-14. Retrieved 2022-02-19.
  6. ^ "Odus Evbagharu". Archived from the original on 2022-02-19. Retrieved 2022-02-19.
  7. ^ Icsezen, Rob (2019). "Odus Evbagharu - A Houston Millennial Goes to Austin". H-Town Progressive. Archived from the original on 2022-02-19. Retrieved 2022-02-19.
  8. ^ "Texas Freedom Network Board of Directors". Texas Freedom Network. 2022-02-19. Archived from the original on 2021-08-14. Retrieved 2022-02-19.