Vedant Patel | |
---|---|
Principal Deputy Spokesperson for the United States Department of State | |
Assumed office June 6, 2022 | |
President | Joe Biden |
Preceded by | Jalina Porter |
Assistant White House Press Secretary | |
In office January 20, 2021 – June 1, 2022 | |
President | Joe Biden |
Personal details | |
Education |
University of California, Riverside University of Florida ( MBA) |
Vedant Patel is an American government official currently serving as the Principal Deputy Spokesperson for the United States Department of State. He has previously served as a spokesperson at the White House, for the Joe Biden 2020 presidential campaign, and for other politicians and organizations.
Patel was born in in Gujarat, India, [1] [2] and grew up in San Jose, California and attended Branham High School. [3] [4] He graduated from the University of California, Riverside, and received a Master of Business Administration from the University of Florida. [1] [5]
Patel has worked as the communications director for U.S. Representatives Pramila Jayapal and Mike Honda, and has served as a press secretary for the Democratic National Committee. [1]
After working for the 2020 Biden presidential campaign and the Biden presidential transition, [5] [6] president-elect Biden named Patel to be an Assistant White House Press Secretary in his upcoming administration in December 2020. [1] He served in this capacity starting in January 2021, after Biden's inauguration. [3]
On June 1, 2022, [7] Patel left his position at the White House to serve as the Principal Deputy Spokesperson for the United States Department of State, [3] starting his new post on June 6, 2022. [5]
In September 2022 Patel became the first Indian American to conduct the daily press briefing at the United States Department of State. [6]
In March 2023, after Ned Price left his post, Patel took over as the leading State Department spokesperson on an interim basis [8] before Matthew Miller assumed the position on April 24, 2023.