OUR TEAM

Chad Heywood is a Founding Partner at Sandpiper Strategies where he provides advice on political and strategic consulting. An expert in grassroots advocacy, data targeting, and public affairs, Heywood has led campaigns at every political level. Prior to Sandpiper Strategies and its affiliated company Camelback Strategy Group, Chad was Executive Director of the Arizona Republican Party from 2013-2016.

Chad has developed winning strategies and run successful local campaigns for Mayor and City Council in cities across Arizona. In 2020 and again in 2022, Heywood ran the Republican Legislative Victory Committee helping retain Republican Majorities in the House and Senate.

Prior to his involvement in politics, Chad worked as a sales and marketing professional, training teams in direct sales, and presenting at marketing and trade shows. Heywood is the father of six children. Happily married to his wife of 21 years, they live in Gilbert, Arizona.

Rick Gorka has over twenty years of media, management, and political experience. Over that time, Rick has successfully developed and implemented creative media strategies in high-pressure situations and brings with him extensive relationships with national and local media along with political leaders.

Rick has served in senior positions on Presidential, Gubernatorial, Senatorial and Congressional campaigns, as well as other public interest and national political organizations.

Throughout his career, Rick has crafted communication plans that successfully echoed organizations' messages across multiple platforms while incorporating like-minded third party supporters. Rick has created and launched successful earned media events across the country, conducted extensive media training, pitched and placed stakeholders on local and national media, drafted both internal and external strategic memorandums and direct mail fundraising letters, placed op-eds and letters to the editor while expanding a social media presence.

In his down time, Rick enjoys playing bad golf, trekking and traveling around the world and exploring his new hobby of mountaineering. He also spends time volunteering with rescue animals.

Rick is originally from Spokane, Washington and now resides in Bordentown, New Jersey with his wife.

One of the most trusted and respected strategists in Republican politics, Chris Carr serves as a Senior Advisor for Sandpiper Strategies. Carr served as the National Political Director for Trump Victory 2020. In 2017 and 2018, Carr served as Senior Vice President of Government and Community Affairs for Wynn Resorts based in Las Vegas, Nevada.

During the 2016 election cycle, Carr was the National Political Director for the Republican National Committee under Chairman Reince Priebus.  Carr and his team launched a new Victory program and fellows’ program. The fellows’ program known as the “Republican Leadership Initiative” (RLI) trained more than 5,000 organizers. In both 2016 and 2020, Carr managed the largest paid field staff and volunteer programs in the history of the Republican National Committee where staff and volunteers made a record number of voter contacts. This record high number of voter contacts focused on voter turnout for President Donald J. Trump and the entire Republican Party ticket.

In 2013, Carr co-founded and consulted a conservative 501c4 organization that oversaw voter registration and voter identification activities in Nevada. The organization, "Engage Nevada" rivaled national liberal outside organizations that have dramatically influenced the political landscape in Nevada. In addition to his work for "Engage Nevada", he was the General Consultant for Garret Graves' successful 2014 campaign for Congress in Louisiana's 6th Congressional District.

His previous work with the RNC includes serving as a Regional Political Director (RPD) during the 2012 presidential election cycle, managing and working with campaign staff and party leaders in the Western region of the country. In 2010, Carr worked in the same region of the country as an RPD for the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) when House Republicans took back the majority, accomplishing the largest turnover in the US House of Representatives since 1948. 

Prior to his work for the national committees, Carr served as both Victory Director and Nevada Republican Party Executive Director during the 2002 and 2004 election cycles. 

With almost a decade of experience in management, grassroots advocacy, and political strategy, Taylor Haller is a seasoned leader who has played a pivotal role in shaping campaigns at both the state and national levels. From large-scale political operations to hands-on grassroots efforts, she has built a reputation for delivering results.

Taylor’s expertise spans key battleground states like Arizona, Florida, and Iowa, where she’s held senior leadership roles in statewide campaigns. Most recently, she served as the Deputy National Field Director for the National Republican Congressional Committee, spearheading grassroots initiatives and Get Out The Vote (GOTV) efforts across 40 target congressional districts.

In 2022, Taylor was the Republican National Committee’s State Director in Florida, where she led an 85-person field team, orchestrating a political operation that helped deliver record-breaking voter turnout for Governor Ron DeSantis, Senator Marco Rubio, and Republican candidates across the state. Before that, she worked in Washington, DC, for the Republican National Committee, helping to strengthen the political infrastructure for state parties across all 50 states and six territories.

A proud native of Phoenix, Arizona and a graduate of Arizona State University, Taylor is passionate about connecting with her community and making an impact through her work. In her free time, she loves spending time with her family, exploring new places through travel, and cheering on her favorite sports teams.

Lunden Santana serves as Director of Operations for Sandpiper Strategies where she provides specific oversight regarding direct mail production and communication.

With experience running direct mail operations for small local races through competitive national elections, Lunden brings vast experience creating eye-catching pieces and managing complex variable data production. Throughout a project, Lunden acts as a final check that the message reaching voters is clear, arrives on time, and is delivered to the targeted universe. Working closely with our account representatives, she ensures that all those interacting with an account have access to relevant information in real time to best service your campaign and cause.

Lunden graduated from Barrett, The Honors College at Arizona State University where she received a bachelor’s degree in English with an emphasis on communication and interdisciplinary analytical writing. In her free time, Lunden enjoys spending time with her family and dog, traveling, and maintaining a healthy obsession with F1 racing.