How the 2016 Democratic convention changed Mark Malouf’s life

Before he belonged to a union, or had any idea what labor group he would eventually join, Mark Malouf knew he wanted to be a union organizer.

Now he’s is member of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, where for more than two years he’s been working to organize Amazon drivers and to get AAA insurance agents to join the Teamsters Union.

He’s also passionate about politics. In 2016 he founded the Bernie Club, helping to register 1,500 new voters while a freshman at Santa Rosa Junior College. That jump-started his own election as a Bernie Sanders delegate to the 2016 Democratic Convention in Philadelphia. He was reelected as a Sanders delegate for the party’s virtual convention in 2020.

In recent weeks he was the campaign manager for Recall Foppoli, the effort to oust Windsor Mayor Dominic Foppoli for alleged rampant sexual harassment. Foppoli recently resigned, freeing up some of Malouf’s time for other volunteer efforts with the Sonoma County Democratic Party political organizing committee.

He’s also been a field canvasser for Sonoma County Conservation Action, assistant political director for the North Bay Labor Council, and spent a year as a paid researcher for the California Democratic Party.

Oh, and he just turned 25. When he was campaigning to be a delegate to the Democratic convention he described himself on social media as, “So progressive I don’t even make right turns when I drive.”

Malouf is a fourth gear kind of guy – he talks fast, effuses enthusiasm, laughs frequently. The dimple on his left check almost always shows as he smiles his way through life, making friends while sharing his views. Working hard to make a difference.

“Face-to-face communication is a fundamental building block to both elections and organizing,” he said, and believes going door to door to talk to people is a crucial part of a campaign. “It’s such hard work, but so important,” he said, remembering his own doorstep-to-doorstep experience.

Lucky for him, “I love meeting new people and hearing their stories. I like to hear about the things that they want to change.”

The son of Simon and Lynn Malouf, he grew up in Sonoma and still lives in town. “I love this county. This is where my people are.” He attended the Presentation School and Sonoma Valley High School and has an older brother, Matt, an attorney who now lives in Seattle.

Malouf explained that many people get into politics through their role in a union, but for him it was just the opposite. “I got into politics to get into union organizing,” he said. “Organized labor is fundamental to my theory of change.”

As a Teamster he has a nice salary and great benefits, and points out that unlike many of his friends, he is not saddled with school loans, although he is not “anti-college” and admits that someday he may return to higher education. “I support college for all,” he said, and then while laughing adds that math has always been a hurdle for him.

“We wouldn’t have had the New Deal or Medicare or Social Security without a vibrant labor movement to support those reforms,” he said, explaining that organized labor will move forward health care reform and fight income inequality. He is working to help pass the so-called Pro Act, which protects workers’ right to organize, which has passed in the House and has the support of President Joe Biden.

Despite being deeply involved and interested in politics, he sees the union as his ongoing future. “I don’t see myself as a politician, I see myself as an organizer,” he said, adding that with more experience he would like to advance to being a union business agent, which is basically the next step up in the union world.

He “loves to read” and enjoys going hiking, but between his full-time job and his volunteer work in the political arena he doesn’t have much free time. He’s happy with the way his life is working out, already feeling fulfilled by his career choice.

“If I have anybody to thank it’s Bernie,” he said. “He created the avenue for me to get involved.” He flashes back to being on the floor of the Democratic convention in 2016 when he was 20 years old. “The energy in that room was unmatched by anything I’ve experienced.”

When his candidate did not earn the nod, Malouf immediately set his sights on Hilary Clinton winning the race, and encouraged his fellow delegates to do the same. “Unfortunately many were not receptive,” he said, and as everyone now recalls Donald Trump won. “I will always vote for the Democrat,” he said.

Malouf is young. His future appears bright because he knows what he wants and is committed to achieving it.

“I want to put a fire in people’s bellies to push them to make the world a better place.”

As he sits at a picnic table on the Plaza in the town where he was raised, totally jazzed and full of hope, it’s easy to believe in him.