Inspiring Latina: Patti Solis Doyle

“By coincidence or perhaps fate, the gray, nondescript building in Arlington, Virginia, where Patricia Solis Doyle runs Senator Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign was a district office of Citizenship and Immigration Services until 2004. It’s a fitting space for Patti, 42, the daughter of Mexican immigrants and the first Latina to run a U.S. presidential campaign. Her corner office is furnished with Clinton hand-me-downs, including an old kitchen table and daughter Chelsea’s armoire. But one thing stands out: a Diego Rivera painting, Los Sembradores. It shows two Mexican men toiling in the soil, bringing forth new life—the perfect metaphor for Patti’s current task.

After managing Hillary’s two triumphant races for New York Senate and heading her political action committee and fund-raising efforts, Patti has become Clinton’s single most important political adviser. “I can’t imagine running for president without her by my side,” Hillary has said of Patti, who confirms she’ll never run for office and is content being a behind-the-scenes player. But what a player she is: At press time, Hillary was leading an ABC News/Washington Post presidential poll with 41 percent of all Democratic support (Barack Obama was her closest competitor at 27 percent). Hillary never even officially asked Patti to run the campaign, where she manages approximately 250 people and millions of dollars in funds. “It was more like, ‘Of course Patti’s the campaign manager,’?” explains Patti, who coined the now-ubiquitous term “Hillaryland” back when Hillary was the first lady.”*

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