J
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Jennifer Taylor-Skinner is the founder and host of the popular political podcast and website, The Electorette. The Electorette is an award-winning podcast, that has been chosen as “Best Political Podcast” by Teen Vogue Magazine, Parade Magazine, Marie Clare Magazine, Apple Podcasts, among others. The Electorette was invited to attend the 2019 SOTU’s Media Row event by Maxine Waters where Jennifer interviewed politicians like Barbara Lee, Maxine Waters, and Val Demings. Jennifer also worked with the Biden/Harris campaign’s women’s media manager to interview politicians who worked with the campaign on crafting progressive and policy related to women’s issues.
Jennifer is a trained classical pianist with a Bachelor of Arts degree in piano performance from the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music. She also minored in Creative Writing, with a concentration on short fiction and poetry, and studied with writers and poets, such as Josip Novakovich, David Lehman, and Yusef Komunyakaa. After college, Jennifer moved to Seattle, where her life and career took a completely different direction: she began working at Microsoft, and spent most of her professional career in the software industry, as a Program Manager, and Software Release Manager.
In 2017, Jennifer suffered and survived a bilateral pulmonary embolism, following a misdiagnosis. This near miss, combined with her disillusionment with the male-dominated tech industry, led Jennifer to seek a new direction for her life and career. Following the election of Trump, and dismayed by the treatment of Hillary Clinton during the 2016 election cycle, Jennifer delved into political podcasting, with the aim of curating a digital space where women’s expertise and voices would be centered. Her goal was to do her own small part to create a more politically astute electorate while highlighting political issues as viewed through the lens of women. For The Electorette, Jennifer has interviewed activists, writers, and politicians, including writers Tressie McMillan-Cottom, Summer Brennan, Bassey Ikpi, philosopher and writer Kate Manne, Moms Demand Founder Shannon Watts, Black Voters Matter cofounder LaTosha Brown, the cofounder of Black Lives Matter and Super Majority, Alicia Garza. The conversations and friendships she’s made through the podcast, especially in relation to feminism and race, has helped Jennifer gain clarity about her own experiences and have informed this collection of essays.
Jennifer is currently enjoying an anxious but joy, and pastry-filled quarantine with her husband, 2-year-old daughter, and 9-year-old son.