Newark — Victory 2017, the coordinated campaign between Murphy for Governor and the New Jersey Democratic State Committee, today announced the hiring of two veteran state political operatives who will undertake crucial roles between now and Election Day.

Victory 2017 Director Iris M. Delgado said that Justin Braz and Amit Jani have joined the campaign effort. Braz will coordinate Victory 2017’s work among the state’s organized labor unions, while Jani will undertake electoral efforts among New Jersey’s growing Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities.

“Justin and Amit both bring a wealth of first-hand organizing experience that cannot be matched,” said Delgado. “They are trusted, they are tested, and they produce results. For the next 13 weeks, they will play critical roles in building the diverse coalition that Democrats will need to elect champions up and down the ballot. We are exited to have them aboard.”

Justin Braz joins Victory 2017 after serving as chief of staff to Assembly Budget Chairman Gary Schaer (D-Passaic/Bergen).

Immediately prior, Braz was political coordinator for 1199 SEIU, and also chief of staff to Assemblywoman Annette Quijano (D-Union). In the 2011 legislative election cycle, Braz was GOTV Director in the General Election for the LD38 campaign of Senator Bob Gordon, Assemblywoman Connie Wagner, and Assemblyman Tim Eustace, and was labor coordinator for the 20th Legislative District primary efforts.

He is a founding member of the New Jersey chapter of the New Leaders Council — a program that trains young progressives from across the state to be future leaders — and served as the organization’s executive director from 2011 until 2016. He currently sits on the NLC’s national board.

Amit Jani currently serves as a Hudson County Director for the South Asian American Caucus within the New Jersey Democratic State Committee.

In 2016, he played a leadership role in South Asians for Hillary, which assisted the Hillary for America campaign on outreach nationally to the South Asian community — and currently serves as a national co-chair of the successor organization South Asians for America, which is committed to advocating for issues important to the South Asian American community and helping to elect progressive candidates across the country.

Jani has also been a district representative for Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr., in Long Branch, and was a legislative aide to Congresswoman Judy Chu and the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus in Washington. He has also assisted on campaigns in the14th Legislative District for Senator Linda Greenstein and Assemblymen Wayne DeAngelo and Daniel Benson.

He is the co-founder and president of the New Jersey Leadership Program, a 501(c)3 organization that exposes South Asian youth to government and politics.