CAA Foundation’s Travis Merriweather Appointed To HeadCount Board Of Directors

CAA Foundation executive Travis Merriweather joins the board of the directors of voter registration organization HeadCount, the latest move in the nonprofit advocacy group’s executive ranks, announced Oct. 24.

Merriweather will support HeadCount’s mission in engaging young people to participate in democracy through strategic partnerships across music, sports and pop culture, according to HeadCount. 

The announcement follows the recent appointment of 32-year-old election official and voting rights advocate Lucille Wenegieme as Executive Director, and the appointment of philanthropist and environmental activist Jessy Tolkan as chairperson of its board of directors earlier this year. She succeeded Peter Shapiro, who completed his four-year term as board chair and maintains a seat on the board.

“I’m incredibly energized by the opportunity to join HeadCount’s Board of Directors and support the indispensable work that the organization is doing to mobilize and engage voters through music,” said Merriweather. “Heading into a U.S. Presidential election year, HeadCount’s commitment to civic participation and democracy is  even more essential, and I look forward to further supporting their mission.” 

Merriweather joined CAA Foundation, the entertainment and sports agency’ philanthropic arm, in 2022 to help drive efforts focused on public education, civic engagement, climate and crisis response. He also leads CAA Civics, a non-partisan employee group dedicated to promoting civic engagement and citizenship. 

“Millennials are now in the position to captain the future of civic engagement as the bridging generation between young America and today’s leaders. HeadCount is continuing to push Millennial leadership forward and Travis’s appointment contributes to our goal in further inspiring the youth vote through a shared fandom of music and culture,” said HeadCount Executive Director Lucille Wenegieme. “I have no doubt that Travis’s impressive experience within voter education and social justice, along with his deep relationships with talent across genres and industries, will contribute to meaningful partnerships as we head into the 2024 election cycle.” 

Prior to his role at CAA, Merriweather served as Senior Political Strategist at ICM Partners, where he aided in the creation of new programs to build a more socially just and inclusive workplace. He was a founding member of the agency’s BIPOC affinity group DiversifyICM, helping to institute employee donation matching programs in support of racial justice organizations in the aftermath of George Floyd and Stop AAPI Hate movements. 

During 2020’s nationwide protests against the police murder of George Floyd, Merriweather was actively engaged in organizing events and marches in support of movements for reform, in addition to his internal organizational efforts.

See: Travis Merriweather On Agency March, Hollywood Activism

“We recognize that there’s a huge hunger and a need within the entertainment industry to get politically involved,” Merriweather told Pollstar at the time. “Politics is more relevant now than it has ever been. The purpose of our department is to help our clients make an impact in that space whether it’s about racial justice, LGBTQ, climate change or wealth inequality. We are here to advise and leverage the power of storytellers in the entertainment world to make political change in the way that they want to see it.”

Earlier in his career, Merriweather mobilized grassroots support for President Obama’s legislative priorities and 2012 re-election campaign with Organizing for America. After helping lead one of the largest voter registration drives on a college campus in America, he worked as a Chief of Staff intern to First Lady Michelle Obama. Merriweather has also consulted for political candidates and campaigns throughout his career, including Hillary for America and Jacky Rosen for U.S. Senate for Nevada. 

Since its inception in 2004, HeadCount has registered more than 1.25 million voters, largely through its work with endless music icons such as Harry Styles, Billie Eilish, Madonna,  Alicia Keys, Kehlani, Dead & Company and The Lumineers. HeadCount volunteers are present at many of the top music festivals and artist tours across the US. Over the years, HeadCount forged partnerships with Spotify, the three major record labels, and the esteemed Global Citizen organization. Most recently, it expanded into sports through agreements with Major League Baseball and the National Hockey League.