For Sowders, the campaign trail led back to Kentucky

When Travis Sowders '97 was a student at Princeton, he often stayed up late into the night, surfing the Web for anything he could find about politics.

"I would wake up at 4:30 in the morning sometimes, and he would be sitting at the computer pulling facts off the Internet about various political figures," said Josh Cohen '97, who roomed with Sowders during their junior and senior years.

"The funny thing is I still remember in 331 1901 Hall, I used to walk by him and he would call out a random political fact in the middle of the night. And when I've been sleeping at night, I just wouldn't care," Cohen joked, calling his roommate a "sponge for knowledge of all types."

Sowders also spent his days soaking up all the political information he could find, said Pete Graham '97, who roomed with Sowders and Cohen during their senior year in Cuyler Hall. "I am a really big hockey fan, so I would watch a lot of hockey during senior year," Graham said. "And the way I would get intense while watching hockey or scream at the TV, Travis would do the same on Election Day. He was always watching shows like 'Inside Politics.' He was a total politico."

Sowders, a long-time Democrat and Wilson School alum, served as campaign manager for Rep. Ken Lucus (D-Ky.), who was running for re-election last year. But though he grew up in Covington, Ky., and still considers the Southern state his home, Sowders admits part of him does not feel welcome in the Bluegrass State.

"This isn't the most liberal place, and it doesn't have the highest quality of life for gay people," Sowders — who only in the last few months began telling friends that he is homosexual — said of his home state. "But there are a million reasons for me to be where I am — it's my home."

When asked if he would ever consider running for office in Kentucky, Sowders reiterated that it might be more difficult to be elected in this region because he is gay. "I wouldn't decide to live in a place because of my electoral chances. That's certainly not how I'd want to live my life. If I do decide to live elsewhere, I don't think politics would be a factor — it would be a lot of things," he said. Sowders said yesterday he had decided not to speak about his sexuality during the campaign so as not to create unwanted attention for his boss.

Three months ago, Sowders had far less time to talk about himself. It was well after 9:30 p.m. on a Monday night this past October, and Sowders was on the campaign trail. "Sorry the phone is not so clear," Sowders said, speaking from a cell phone on a dark highway in the middle of Kentucky's fourth district.

It had been a long few weeks for Sowders, who was trying to to ensure that a predominantly Republican district re-elected Lucus, his Democratic boss.

Though Lucus was the incumbent, in a region where conservative views and values predominate, any Democrat — incumbent or challenger — was in for a tough battle. With the campaign headed into its final stretch, Sowders, the congressman's campaign manager, was finding the burden of the battle placed squarely on his shoulders.

"We're on the road," he said, bits of static drowning out part of his sentences, "but I can answer anything you want to know."

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Sowders is one of many Princeton alumni who worked behind the scenes in national and local politics during the last election. While Ralph Nader '55, Bill Bradley '65 and Steve Forbes '70 hogged headlines on campus, Sowders — who is 25 years old and three years removed from Princeton — drove the backroads of the fourth Congressional district, trying to vault Lucus back to Washington for another term.

"Even though Kentucky is a very Democratic state, Ken Lucus is the only Democrat left in our congressional delegation," Sowders said. "Lucus is a good fit for his district. He's fairly conservative by Democratic standards, and he represents the views and feelings of his district.

As a child in a working-class family — his father is a truck driver, his mother is a secretary — Sowders has always had fairly liberal views. "Any person from a working class background who doesn't vote for Democrats ought to have their head examined," he said.

"Just like Harry Truman said, 'If you want to live like a Republican, you better vote Democrat,'" he said.

And while many people point to specific instances in their lives that helped them decide on a career, Sowders simply recalled a love of politics. "Ever since I was about five years old, I have been interested in politics," Sowders said. "There was really no specific reason; I just liked it."

He came to Princeton and majored in the Wilson School after graduating second in his class from Knox Central High School in Kentucky. "I knew I was interested in politics when I came to Princeton, and the Woodrow Wilson School was a good choice of a major."

"It prepared me to be a jack-of-all-trades," Sowders said of the Wilson School. "Although I'm not directly involved in public policy, I feel that I'm using my degree very well. I think that being able to draw from different disciplines — history, politics, etc. — definitely helps dealing with the press. I can articulate better the importance of the Abandoned Land Mine Fund if I know the history of Appalachian poverty."

Even before he graduated from Princeton, Sowders had already begun to apply his political knowledge and training to his home state of Kentucky. His senior thesis focused on economic development planning in poor regions of eastern Kentucky. Sowders argued that the Appalachian Regional Commission — a government agency founded in 1965 specifically designed for improvements in the region's economic and social development — would allow eastern Kentucky to pave the way for vast economic improvement. The ARC includes programs that range from job training to highway construction to helping small startup businesses.

"The Appalachian Regional Commission has increased entrepreneurship by creating local jobs and improving the local government," Sowders explained.

While some policy makers have argued that government intervention is not the answer to the problems of the Appalachian region, Lucus has advocated creating government programs to boost the area's economy.

Sowders agrees. "Ken Lucus has been a driving force in the development of northern Kentucky's economy," he said.

Sowders didn't hop on the campaign trail immediately after graduation. After receiving his degree, Sowders went to work on Capitol Hill for Rep. Alan Mollohan (D-W.Va.) from the state's first district. "Capitol Hill is a great place to work," Sowders explained. "The money is not as good as Wall Street, but there is a great deal of power available at a very young age."

He added that for Princeton students considering a career in politics, Capitol Hill is an ideal place to start. "There aren't enough Princeton kids on Capitol Hill," Sowders said with a chuckle. "There are plenty of contacts in the Princeton family who can provide young alums with a great start in the political arena."

After his work with Mollohan, Sowders sent his resume to several Kentucky congressmen. He was eventually hired as a staff worker on Lucus' campaign, and a strong work ethic and knack for his job enabled him to rise through the ranks of the congressman's staff.

And Sowders considers himself lucky to have worked for a congressman who shares many of his political views and who is willing to fight for those causes.

"Ken Lucus definitely embodies the same ideas that I have about [progress in] Kentucky," Sowders said. "Congressman Lucus is leading the charge for conservative and moderate Democrats to take back our state from a GOP more interested in holding power than protecting people."

When asked if he has political aspirations of his own, Sowders was hesitant to rule out running for office — but for now, he insists he is content to keep his name off the ballot. "Elected public service is a wonderful job, but it is a very difficult one as well," Sowders noted. "There is a great deal of sacrifice in being a politician. You sacrifice a great deal of your personal life, and there is little time for your family."

Graham said that there was "no doubt in my mind" that Sowders would eventually work in politics. "I'm amazed that three years out of college, he already was running the election campaign of an incumbent congressman," Graham explained. "When I think of Travis, he always had strong political views, but even in college, I don't think he knew if he wanted to run for political office. I always felt like he could go either way — to either run for office or be the next James Carville."

Cohen agreed that he expected Sowders to have an impact on politics after graduation. "I really think he's someone who wants to change things," Cohen said. "It comes from his upbringing in Kentucky. I don't know if it'll definitely be in politics, but he always espouses a liberal viewpoint. There's no hypocrisy there."

In November, the young and relatively inexperienced Sowders went up against other campaign managers who have decades of experience, but he felt he was up to the challenge — and he was, as Lucus incumbent defeated Republican candidate Don Bell with 55 percent of the popular vote.