Hi, Iʼm Honest Charley Bodkin

Campaign Strategist
Government Nerd
Writer
Community Organizer
Communicator
Designer
Software Engineer
Political Consultant
Public Speaker
Data Analyst

San Francisco, CA

My name was given to me at birth. Honest was my great-grandfatherʼs nickname—he started a business named Honest Charleyʼs Speed Shop, which was the first national catalog to sell hot rod and race car parts. Most of my friends and colleagues call me Charley, but I also go by my first name, Honest. I welcome a good joke or two about my name.

I have a passion for technology, design, and civics. I graduated from Ithaca College in 2014 with a bachelor of science in broadcast media production. I started my career in 2014 at the Los Angeles Times, where I was a data journalist and product engineer. I went on in 2018 to found my own company, Yellow Brim, which sold a subscription software named Osmosys to clients that included the Los Angeles Times, Vox Media, CalMatters, and Lookout Local to help them more efficiently send daily newsletters to readers.

After leaving Yellow Brim in 2022, I led an international team of engineers at Converge Insurance as a founding engineer to launch a completely new underwriting platform from 2022 to 2023.

During the 2024 election cycle, I was Director of Campaign Operations for the Dylan Hirsch-Shell for San Francisco Mayor campaign, after I suspended my own campaign for Mayor. I managed an organization of 4 and tens of volunteers. I was responsible for operationalizing the campaign; development of strategic messaging; speechwriting; event management; designing, printing, and sending direct mail to hundreds of thousands of voters; designing several print and digital advertisements for several newspapers, including the San Francisco Chronicle; and building a web application that enabled our team to target voters, phone bank, and canvass thousands of doors. We ultimately earned the votes of thousands of San Franciscans, with an expenditure effectiveness of $49/vote, and even less when considering ranked choice voting, which was more competitive than several other campaigns that had built-in earned media due to existing name recognition.

I‘m currently open to work. I‘m particularly interested in roles that involve some combination of design, media, data, technology, civics, and making positive change in the world. Fundamentally though, I love working with good people, so if you‘re a good person looking for someone with my skills, I‘d love to hear from you.

Thank you for your interest,
Honest

Projects

Blog: The City & County

Independent news source covering San Francisco from the Neighborhoods to City Hall and beyond for and by the public. Posts have received over 100k views in first two weeks since start at end of January 2025.

Metric for success: 100k+ views in first two weeks of launch.

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Communications

Photos: San Francisco leaders host 2025 Lunar New Year celebration at City Hall

Photograph collection published February 5, 2025

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CommunicationsPhotography

Photos: San Francisco Mayor Lurie declares 2/5/25 “Barry Bonds Day” in ceremony at City Hall

Photograph collection published February 5, 2025

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CommunicationsPhotography

San Francisco Board of Supervisors votes 10–1 to pass Mayor Lurie’s Fentanyl Emergency Ordinance

Blog post published February 4, 2025

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Communications

SF Supervisor Matt Dorsey calls for hearing on DA Staffing amid anticipated Prop. 36 workload surge

Blog post published February 4, 2025

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Communications

San Francisco's new Commission Streamlining Task Force to hold first meeting Friday following the passage of former Supervisor Aaron Peskin's Prop. E

Blog post published January 29, 2025

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Communications

San Francisco Democratic Party adopts resolution to condemn “the big money and corporations that are now funding Donald Trump’s agenda,” following hour-long debate

Blog post published January 23, 2025

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Communications

Mobilized canvassers to knock thousands of doors

As the Director of Operations I was responsible for mobilizing volunteers and campaign team to knock on the doors of thousands of San Francisco voters for the Dylan Hirsch-Shell for Mayor 2024 campaign. We used a custom mobile CRM that I developed to easily record engagement with voters and track the effectiveness of our canvassing efforts. We used a custom algorithm to target precincts and voters based on census data, donor data, and voter registration data.

Metric for success: Thousands of doors knocked.

Campaign OperationsCommunity Engagement

2024 San Francisco Mayoral Campaign Physical Mailers

Messaging, design, address aggregation, targeting, printing, and sending of over 250,000 mailers sent to San Francisco voters for the Dylan Hirsch-Shell for Mayor 2024 campaign. According to our printing press, we innovated the use of per-mailer QR codes to track the effectiveness of our mailers. An accompanying flyer was designed that we handed out at events and canvassing.

Metric for success: Hundreds of thousands of mailers sent, with competitive $49/vote cost.

Campaign OperationsDesignCommunications

2024 San Francisco Mayoral Campaign One-Time Email Newsletters

Messaging, design, and targetting of over 300,000 email blasts sent to San Francisco voters for the Dylan Hirsch-Shell for Mayor 2024 campaign. We used a custom CRM to target voters based on census data, donor data, voter registration data, and geographic information. We sent small batches of emails to A-B test messaging and design, reaching a maximum open rate of 45%.

Metric for success: 45% open rate in most successful campaign sent.

Campaign OperationsDesignCommunications

GetElected CRM and Canvassing App

Development of a custom CRM and canvassing app for minimal monthly cost, enabling the Dylan Hirsch-Shell for Mayor 2024 campaign to store over half a million voter records, target voters using local and federal donor data, phone bank, and canvass thousands of doors. No-frills design and development allowed for rapid deployment and iteration.

Metric for success: Over half a million records managed and dozens of users.

Campaign OperationsDesignSoftware Engineering

In-person and Virtual Event Management

Managed in-person and virtual events for the Dylan Hirsch-Shell for Mayor 2024 campaign, coordinating volunteers and interns to drive voters to events with strategic messaging and event planning. Events ranged from weekly volunteer efforts to larger meet-the-candidate events. Events were planned and executed strategically to maximize voter engagement and the candidate's time.

Metric for success: Strong attendance at numerous events.

Campaign OperationsCommunity Engagement

Yellow Brim's Osmosys Web Application

Development of an enterprise web application named Osmosys for Yellow Brim—a startup that I cofounded—that automated email production for journalists. We sold our software to clients that included the Los Angeles Times, Vox Media, CalMatters, and Lookout Local. Osmosys features a drag-and-drop email editor, integrations with several ESPs, and custom integrations with any CMS.

Metric for success: Product in use for 7+ years by major media outlets. Saved users 45+ minutes per email sent.

Product ManagementDesignSoftware Engineering

Los Angeles Times Live Blog

Development of a live blog for the Los Angeles Times that was used to cover the 2016 Presidential election, 2016 Summer Olympics, and was instrumental of our Pulitzer Prize-winning breaking-news coverage of the 2015 San Bernardino Terrorist Attack. Working closely with the journalists in the newsroom, I helped design the UX for the liveblog desktop and mobile applications.

Metric for success: Contributed to Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News, generated millions of pageviews, and was deployed across several sister publications including Baltimore Sun, Chicago Tribune, and San Diego Union Tribune.

Product ManagementDesignSoftware Engineering

L.A.’s aging water pipes; a $1-billion dilemma

Design and development of a data-driven news article featuring an interactive map and chart chronicling the history of Los Angeles' failing water infrastructure. Worked closely with journalists and designers on the Data Desk.

Metric for success: Large numbers of online traffic and reader discussion generated.

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Data VisualizationCommunicationsSoftware Engineering

Design of brands, websites, and motion graphics

Over the course of my career, I've worked with numerous clients to design, develop, and launch brands, websites, and printed materials or signage. I've combined a set of skills ranging from graphic design to Python or Node.JS with a deep understanding of various domains from small businesses to large media brands to political campaigns.

Metric for success: Many satisfied clients.

Software EngineeringDesignCommunications