Jackie Norris

Jackie Norris (born 1970) is a business owner and community leader in the United States. Norris is the current President and Owner of Horizon Group in West Des Moines, Iowa.^[1]

Jackie Norris
Norris in 2024
Chief of Staff to the First Lady
In office March 2009 – June 2009
President	Barack Obama
First Lady	Michelle Obama
Preceded by	Anita McBride
Succeeded by	Susan Sher
Personal details
Born	1970 (age 54–55) Ossining, New York, U.S.
Education	State University of New York, Geneseo (BA) Iowa State University (MA)

Early life

Norris was born in Ossining, New York and earned a degree in political science from the State University of New York at Geneseo in 1992 followed by a master’s in political science from Iowa State University. In 2002, Norris also received her secondary education teacher certification from Iowa State University.

Business and political career

Norris has served as an American government official, non-profit leader and small business owner. She has worked as Chief of Staff to the First Lady, Michelle Obama, in 2009 and as CEO of Goodwill of Central Iowa.^[2][3][4]

Norris has served as an advisor to corporate leaders and Fortune 500 companies.^[5][6]

She serves as the Chair of the Des Moines School Board.^[7]

She is President and Owner of Horizon Group, a marketing and consulting business.^[8]

On August 5, 2025, Norris announced her candidacy for the 2026 United States Senate election in Iowa, vying for the Democratic nomination to challenge Senator Joni Ernst.^[9]

Personal life

Norris is married to John R. Norris, former Commissioner at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), and Minister Counselor to the United States Mission to the United Nations (USUN) in Rome, Italy.^[10] Norris has three sons.^{[citation needed]}