Carla V. Bernal

Program Fellow, U.S. Democracy

Carla Bernal is a U.S. Democracy Program Fellow at the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. She leads a grantmaking portfolio focused on improving voting access for every eligible voter, including those who have historically been marginalized by the political system. She also manages a broader portfolio of grants to strengthen U.S. democracy by ensuring that elections are secure, accessible, and worthy of the public’s trust. Most recently, Carla developed and co-chaired a $5.5M fund to invest in nearly two dozen nonprofit organizations combatting anti-Asian, Asian-American, and Pacific Islander hate.

Previously, Carla served in the Obama Administration as the Deputy White House Liaison at the U.S. Department of Justice, where she managed the transition of political appointees during the Obama-Trump transition of power and worked on community policing issues. Prior to that role, Carla served in the Office on Violence Against Women and coordinated with the White House Council on Women and Girls to enhance the federal interagency response to domestic and sexual violence.

Carla graduated Phi Beta Kappa with high distinction from UC Berkeley. She holds a bachelor of arts in rhetoric with a concentration in public discourse.

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