AFSA Governing Board Election: Campaign Messages #1

The AFSA Committee on Elections is overseeing the regularly scheduled election of AFSA officers and representatives of its Governing Board and as such is responsible for ensuring that the election is conducted in accordance with the law.

Use of union or employer funds or resources to promote or criticize the candidacy of any person in a union officer election is prohibited. For additional information, please see the election rules located at www.afsa.org/elections. Foreign affairs agency employees should use their personal computers and email accounts on their own time to communicate directly with candidates at the candidates’ personal email. The same rules should be followed to communicate amongst each other regarding the candidates for election. Employees found to have used government resources including .gov email accounts to promote or criticize candidates could be subject to discipline from their agency.

You may not use government resources to reproduce, forward or further transmit these emails in any way. Voters have ample opportunity through personal email accounts and/or personal social media to express your opinions.

The order of statements was determined by a drawing of lots. Not all candidates submitted a statement. Questions regarding the election should be sent to election@afsa.org.

Ballots will be mailed on Monday March 31 to all eligible voters. Candidate statements are available on the AFSA website.

+ denotes a member of the Diplomacy Matters slate

^ denotes a member of the Support and Defend Slate

Tom Yazdgerdi, Candidate for President +

I am running for re-election as AFSA president to defend our members and save the Foreign Service in this time of unprecedented upheaval.

Under my leadership, AFSA filed three class-action lawsuits to fight the:

Dismantling of USAID.
Illegal and chaotic way in which the USAID RIF process has been conducted.
Shuttering of the U.S. Agency of Global Media.

AFSA is also proposing a FS Voluntary Early Retirement Authority (VERA) for our mid-level members who are short of retirement eligibility.

On the AFSA Governing Board since 2019, my most notable contributions include:

10-year authorization of Overseas Comparability Pay
Per diem for FS local hires
Benefits to those with Anomalous Health Incidents
Passage of the Foreign Service Families Act
Fly America Act waiver and $4,000 for pet travel

I don’t require a steep learning curve. I know the issues and the players. And I humbly ask for your vote to keep fighting.

Randy Chester, Candidate for USAID Vice President

I want to thank every USAID FSO and FSL for their incredible service and applaud you all for the sacrifices you have made in service to America. Your work will be long remembered for the lives it saved, the lives you made better, and the peace and security you brought to America and the American people.

It has been my privilege and honor to serve as your Vice President. These past few months, I have been inspired by your resilience in the face of this corrupt and misguided onslaught and attack on the world’s premier development agency and the best development professionals ever to serve.

This is not the job I expected 2 years ago, but it is the job I want now. I can’t promise any quick resolutions, but I can promise you that if you re-elect me, I will continue being an unreasonable man.

Sue Saarnio, Candidate for Secretary

I am seeking re-election as AFSA’s Secretary because I believe the United States needs a committed corps of officers prepared to represent our interests abroad. That’s you. And when you’re serving overseas, you need someone back in Washington to look out for your interests. That’s AFSA. AFSA has been standing up for you, calling out the new administration, and filing lawsuits to protect our Foreign Service colleagues at USAID and VOA. The AFSA board, our talented staff, and retirees all have your back. We will support you in the months ahead so that you can focus on your jobs and continue to promote the security and prosperity of the United States. Take care of yourselves, your families, and co-workers. And be sure that your local staff know you couldn’t do your jobs without them.

Rohit Nepal, Candidate for State Department Vice President +

Like many of you, I joined the Foreign Service after 9/11. I've felt a similar call to service since January, this time to step up and defend our people and our institutions. That’s why I’m running for State VP as part of the Diplomacy Matters slate.

I’m appalled by the unfounded attacks against the Foreign Service that I love, demeaning our integrity, loyalty, and commitment to the American people. As a CDA, I’ve seen the damage first-hand. I’ve comforted our USAID team in their darkest moment and spent hours trying to reassure anxious colleagues. Be assured, I will fight for you, like I have been doing for my mission and as I did my clients when I was a civil rights lawyer.

If you are feeling demoralized, I hear you. Now is the time to defend ourselves and the Foreign Service. We can do it, together.

Reach me at rohitsnepal @ yahoo.com.

Stephanie Straface, Candidate for State Department Representative +

I am honored to submit my candidacy for State Department Representative on the AFSA Board, bringing 12 years of experience in the U.S. Foreign Service. My goal is to advocate for our community, ensuring every Foreign Service employee is treated with respect, fairness, and dignity. I will focus on supporting entry and midlevel officers, providing them with the resources and guidance needed to navigate their careers. I’ll also champion the protection and growth of diplomatic fellowship programs, ensuring they remain a strong and accessible path into the Foreign Service. Additionally, I will prioritize workplace fairness, career development, and workforce well-being, addressing concerns promptly and effectively. I will work to prevent actions that harm trust and morale and ensure that junior officers have a voice in shaping their careers. As your representative, I will work tirelessly to safeguard our rights and uphold the values that make the Department and AFSA strong.

Support and Defend Slate ^

We are the Support & Defend slate of candidates.

Our goals are threefold:

Defend our Members: The damage inflicted to the Foreign Service will not be repaired easily or quickly. We promise to:

Ensure AFSA leads legal actions to enforce established workforce protections and codified procedures.
Argue to cut vacant positions first if cuts must come, not people.
Advocate that workforce reductions are fairly distributed, not focused on untenured colleagues, and that the Department keeps its promises to fellows ready to join our ranks.
Continue to secure early retirement opportunities for FS professionals.

It is clear now that leadership has no intention to consult with AFSA. Therefore, AFSA needs to shift its approach and more aggressively defend against attacks on the Foreign Service.

Stronger Advocacy: AFSA has primarily addressed the leadership of the organizations where we work. Instead, we need to stop letting others craft our story and conduct more effective outreach underlining how the foreign service keeps America safer, stronger, and more prosperous. Therefore, we will double AFSA’s Congressional outreach department and create a new department solely focused on public outreach.

Transparency through Communications: We commit to better communication and greater transparency. We will collaborate with “paused” employee organizations (affinity groups), host more interactive town halls, amplify weekly updates, and leverage post representatives to inform you of our actions and solicit your input. We commit to proactive, timely notice on issues that affect you. For instance, we would not have delayed broadly sharing the expiration of Overseas Comparability Pay.

John Dinkelman, President

Logan Wheeler, State Vice President

Ambassador Gina Abercrombie-Winstanley, Retiree Vice President

Sandra Abrahamsen, State Full Time Representative

hannah draper, State Representative

Donald Emerick, State Representative

Connor Ferry-Smith, State Representative

DeMark Schulze, State Representative

Austan Mogharabi, USAID Representative

Donald Camp, Retiree Representative

Yolonda Kerney, Retiree Representative

Michael Kirby, Candidate for Retiree Representative +

I’d love to represent you on the AFSA Board as a retiree representative. We all retired from the Foreign Service understanding our benefits were earned and expecting our benefits would continue indefinitely. Unfortunately, that certainty risks evaporating. To find money from the budget to pay for administration priorities that rank higher than current and former government employees, expect congress to examine every benefit for potential cost savings.

As part of the Diplomacy Matters slate, if elected, I will do my utmost to ensure AFSA keeps Foreign Service retirees updated on key pocketbook issues. We need a strong, vibrant Foreign Service across the agencies and departments. But AFSA also needs to keep central the future welfare of those of us who are retired as it sets its priorities across multiple constituencies in these complex, tumultuous times. I hope I can count on your vote and look forward to representing you.

Julie Nutter, Candidate for Retiree Representative +

I’m running for retiree representative on the Diplomacy Matters slate. After eight years as AFSA’s Policy Director, I witnessed the dedication, focus, and selflessness of our retiree members, especially during these last two months.

Retirees have helped AFSA win at the state level in Virginia, where your lobbying was invaluable in passing legislation making Foreign Service kids exempt from onerous physical residency requirements and making the transfer of credits from overseas schools much easier. Thank you for helping our parents face one less hurdle.

I will make this collaboration even stronger by asking the AFSA Board to create a committee made up of our volunteers to report back to the Board on a regular basis. Our retirees deserve to have their accomplishments recognized and supported.

Finally, I will fight to keep your pensions and health benefits as they are right now. To do less disregards your service to our country.

John Naland, Candidate for Treasurer

Having served on the AFSA Governing Board for 14 of the last 26 years in the positions of President, State VP, and Retiree VP, I believe that my knowledge and experience could benefit the next Governing Board. Therefore, I ask for your vote for me to serve as AFSA Treasurer.

The position of Treasurer will be especially important over the next two years if AFSA experiences a decline in revenue due to Foreign Service reductions in force and/or faces the need to increase expenditures to defend the Foreign Service. Fortunately, Governing Boards over the past several decades have built up a sizeable operating reserve. AFSA will likely need to draw down those reserves to fund core programs and defend the Foreign Service but should do so prudently given that the current “black swan” event will likely last at least four years.

Peter Burba, Candidate for State Department Vice President

My name is Peter Burba, I joined the Foreign Service in 2009 and have been an AFSA rep in Bucharest, Moscow, Berlin and Abuja. Our union faces challenges on different fronts, but the top priority should remain protecting the employment of our current members.

If RIFs occur, AFSA must advocate for reinstatement policies that give members the best possible chance to return to the Foreign Service. AFSA should not be pushing for hiring commitments for non-members from fellowship programs while we face potential job loss.

We need to use surveys to get the heartbeat of the membership. For example, in contrast to AFSA's current stance, I believe most members agree that DEIA as a promotion precept did not make sense and welcome its removal. Ultimately, change is coming, our collective bargaining rights should give us power to be involved in the process, but we need to choose our priorities wisely.

Christina Higgins, Candidate for State Department Representative

Federal workers are patriots. Diplomacy is national security. I want to thank each and every one of you for showing up to work every day, giving the Department, your colleagues and the American people your best. As an FSO of 25 years, I will put my extensive HR experience at your service. I have served on several non-profit boards. Our shared experiences will inform my advocacy: I have been single in the Foreign Service, divorced, married, a parent, a subordinate, a supervisor, a DCM. I know what it’s like to be an entry-level employee with two weeks annual leave at a hardship post and to need the education allowance for speech therapy for my child. I want to show up for you and I want to show up for the principle of collective bargaining.

John O’Keefe, Candidate for Retiree Vice President +

The time is now. Upcoming legislation is moving through Congress and threats loom to our pension system, health benefits, and to the status of the Foreign Service itself. Choosing who can best serve us becomes one of the most consequential in recent memory.

I served as Executive Director of a legislative branch agency for ten years. I worked closely with my Board that included a bi-partisan group of Senators and House members that sometimes changed with elections. As Retiree VP, I can advocate for you with key members of Congress, particularly with the current majority.

As Treasurer for the past four years, we have run an AFSA budget surplus, ensuring that your dues serve your interests. I have also been Chair of the AFSA Finance Committee where we have created workable contingency plans to ensure that we can meet the legal and other costs that we face this year.

Kevin Sampson, Candidate for USAID Vice President

Dear AFSA Members, my name is Kevin Sampson. I am running for the USAID VP Position. Like 9/11 the events surrounding our Agency’s demise have called me to serve.

With 6,000 contracts in suspension, as an industrial engineer and seasoned contracting officer, I will be uniquely qualified to offer sound analytics to leadership which will drive headcount negotiations which will determine the structure of the Agency going forward.

In closing, it’s a new day. We need to adopt the U.S. Army’s warrior ethos which states – 1. Mission First – focus on beneficiaries, 2. Never accept defeat –we must continue to fight to the bitter end. 3. Never quit - A “full court press” for advocacy that is relentless and deafening via political and social media channels. 4. Never leave a fallen comrade – all employees matter - FSO, FSL, PSC, FSN or EFM.

Thanks for your consideration. Questions: ksampson99 @ aol.com.

Jay Carreiro, Candidate for FCS Vice President +

Dear Colleagues:

As you all know, we face some significant challenges as a service and an organization. The next two years promise to be unpredictable, and funding will be tight. However, those of you that know me know that I’m deeply committed to our organization and its people. That will never change.

My top priorities will be transparency at all levels in Commerce, especially with respect to resource allocation and workforce planning. I will continue to engage in vigorous Congressional outreach to raise our profile and ensure that our organization provides the support you and your families need. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to me with questions, concerns, or ideas. My line is always open: jay.carreiro @ fastmail.com.

I thank you for your support and I look forward to being your staunchest advocate in Washington.

Tedde Thompson, Candidate for Retiree Representative

America and the Foreign Service are at a critical crossroads. If we don’t tell our story, someone else will – and not necessarily the way we want it told.

Overseas, we tell America’s story to promote American interests and values. In America, we must tell AFSA’s story - who we are, what we do, and why we do it.

Retirees make a difference within AFSA, the nation, and our local communities. We provide expertise, institutional memory and perspective. We lived the story.

I joined the Foreign Service after successful careers in journalism and public affairs. As a PD officer, I served in India, Turkey, Mauritius and Seychelles and taught PD tradecraft at FSI. Now, I want to serve my AFSA colleagues and my country. I ask for your vote to help tell AFSA’s story, lead, effect change, and protect our rights, benefits, and voice as one of AFSA’s two Retiree Representatives.