Andrew Villeneuve, Founder
Andrew J. Villeneuve (born January 12th, 1987) is an American political activist and entrepreneur. He is the founder and executive director of the Northwest Progressive Institute, launched in August of 2003, as well as a regular columnist for Reporter Newspapers.
A lifelong Washingtonian, Villeneuve was raised by his parents in Redmond, Washington, where he attended public schools before graduating from the Lake Washington School District in June of 2005.
While at Redmond Junior High, Villeneuve was a member of the National Junior Honor Society and served as leader of the school's web team, responsible for designing and managing the school's website. Villeneuve received the Webmaster 2002 Award in recognition for these efforts, as well as a Presidential Scholar Award for academic performance.
At Redmond High School, Villeneuve was instrumental in helping to form the Eastside Liberal Students group, which he served as President of during his senior year (2004-2005). Villeneuve was also a member of Redmond High School DECA, an active chapter of the national business and marketing association, where he served on the Executive Board as the Technology officer (2003-2004) and Public Relations officer (2004-2005).
During his junior year he was also the Chief Financial Officer of the Redmond Affinity Group, a Junior Achievement Company.
An honors student, Villeneuve holds a AP Scholar with Distinction Award from the College Board for exemplary college level achievement on Advanced Placement examinations. He currently attends Bellevue College.
Villeneuve's interest in politics began in 1999 when he first became concerned with the consequences of Initiative 695, a ballot measure sponsored by Tim Eyman which sought to dramatically cut Washington's motor vehicle excise tax (MVET).
Three years later, in February of 2002, Villeneuve formed Permanent Defense to publicly oppose Eyman's initiatives, which continues to fight against senseless tax cuts to this day. Permanent Defense subsequently became a key part of the Northwest Progressive Institute when NPI was launched in 2003.
Villeneuve has led or worked on opposition efforts to several major statewide initiatives, including campaigns against Initiative 776 (2002), Initiative 892 (2004), Initiative 900 (2005) Initiative 912 (also 2005), Initiative 960 (2007) Initiative 985 (2008) and Initiative 1033 (2009). He has appeared in or on many of Washington State's traditional media outlets, advocating for more effective government and mutual responsibility.
Under Villeneuve's leadership, the Northwest Progressive Institute has grown from a simple idea on a piece of paper to a nimble political startup influential in the politics of the Pacific Northwest, with a strong presence on the Internet.
Villeneuve is an active and proud member of the Democratic Party; he serves on the Executive Board of 45th District Democrats as its Endorsements Chair.
In February of 2006, the King County Democrats honored him with their Rising Star of the Year award to recognize his accomplishments. They also co-honored him as Blogger of the Year in October of 2007 with David Goldstein.
Villeneuve has long been active in his community; he twice participated in the City of Redmond's Youth in Government Day and has worked on the city's Transportation Master Plan. For his community involvement, he received the Mayor's Circle of Leadership Award from Redmond Mayor Rosemarie Ives in 2005.
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You can contact Andrew Villeneuve through NPI's contact form.
© 2010 Northwest Progressive Institute.
