Clayton
Herbst.

I’m a Political Strategist who combines data, systems engineering, and grassroots organizing to help campaigns punch above their weight.

I founded Sapphire Strategies and study law at Washington University, with a particular interest in civil rights litigation.

Explore my work

Based in St. Louis. Working across Missouri and beyond.JDRF fundraiser · November 2023

Missouri Times30 Under 302024

Missouri Young Democrat of the Year 2023

Campaign work

Organizing
across Missouri.

I served as Executive Director of the St. Charles County Democrats, then as Campaign Manager for Elad Gross’s statewide race for Attorney General.

On Elad’s campaign, I built a statewide organizing operation that reached hundreds of thousands of voters. I managed the campaign’s budget, led its staff, and helped volunteers organize in communities across Missouri.

Clayton presenting at the first-ever Young Democrats Day, which he created in St. Charles — Young Democrats Day · St. Charles, March 2022

Clayton speaking at an outdoor reproductive rights rally — Speaking at a rally · May 2022

“Clayton is exactly what Missouri needs to move this state forward in the coming years.”
Ron Odenthal2024 Democratic Nominee
Missouri House, District 105

Read his 30 Under 30 nomination

Elad Gross for Attorney General · 2023–2024

$500,000: Campaign budget managed
15+: Staff, consultants and contractors overseen
10,000+: Volunteers managed and trained across the campaign

The company I founded

Sapphire
Strategies.

I founded Sapphire in 2024 to help campaigns compete with better-funded opponents. We bring together strategy, data, advertising, and the software that helps our clients organize.

Visit Sapphire

Inside Sapphire’s toolkit

Explore the tools

Call time & phone banking

Voter & donor data

News & narrative monitoring

My story

From FIRST robotics
to civil rights.

Together in FIRST · Co-founded in 2018

Disability access
at robotics events.

I co-founded Together in FIRST to advocate for young people with mental and physical disabilities at FIRST robotics events.

countriesreached in our first three years

What we secured across events

Quiet rooms: A place to step away from the noise and crowds.
Closed captioning: Access to what was being said, as well as what was happening.
Teams seated together: Dedicated seating so teams could stay with members who used wheelchairs.

Clayton speaking during his Youth in Government gubernatorial campaign in Jefferson City — Youth in Government gubernatorial campaign
Jefferson City · December 2019

Lindenwood · Student Body President

Students had a say.

I brought the administration to the students. They asked for our input, listened to our feedback, and reversed major decisions.

Dining hall restrictions reversed.

We challenged restrictions on students’ use of the dining hall and got them reversed.

The credit-hour cap reduction reversed.

We helped reverse a credit-hour cap reduction that would have meant one fewer class included in tuition.

Graduated in 2025 with a 4.0 GPA. Political science and international relations, with minors in digital marketing and economics.

Today · Washington University School of Law

The next chapter:
civil rights litigation.

I’m pursuing my J.D. at WashU and working as a Law Clerk at Pitzer Snodgrass. I’m particularly interested in civil rights litigation, building on the advocacy that first drew me to organizing.

More about my experience