ABOUT RYAN
Ryan Middleton is an attorney and public policy professional with over a decade of experience at the federal, state, and local levels. Ryan currently serves as the Government Affairs Senior Manager for PepsiCo in the Northeast US region, helping the company navigate policy complexities, sustainability, and corporate responsibility with state and local governments.
After earning his undergraduate degree from Cornell University and his law degree from Michigan State University College of Law, Ryan—with an eye toward public service—returned home to start his career in Prince George’s County, Maryland. His journey began as a law clerk to Judge Beverly Woodard in Maryland’s Seventh Judicial Circuit. Ryan later served as field representative to U.S. Senator Ben Cardin, organizing business and community roundtables and taking on constituent service matters. He fielded thousands of calls from residents and assisted on all matters whether local, state, or federal.
In 2018, Ryan joined the Office of County Executive Angela Alsobrooks, where he helped shape a people-focused policy agenda that drove millions in nonprofit funding to communities, resources to federal workers affected by the 2019 government shutdown, and secured nearly $50 million in federal funding to increase transit access and make neighborhoods more walkable and bicycle friendly. In the wake of the George Floyd and William Green murders in police custody, Ryan managed the County’s police reform work group, leading a six-month public review process of the County’s public safety institutions and delivering reforms that yielded a safer, more transparent, and community-oriented police department. These efforts all happened in concert to ensure residents feel safe when encountering public safety officials, supported by their local government, and invested in the County’s positive, sustainable growth.
At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Ryan devised and coordinated a series of tele-town halls to provide critical information to residents. When vaccines were developed, Ryan designed the County’s vaccine pre-registration platform to sort residents by eligibility and ensure its most vulnerable residents were protected first. As vaccine supply increased, he chaired the County’s vaccine equity team to ensure vaccine delivery in the most at-risk communities. In four months, the team closed the vaccine equity gap by half and took Prince George’s County from the 24th to 5th highest vaccinated county in the state and did so by ensuring its most vulnerable populations were included in the effort. Prioritizing equity was not only the right thing to do, it was the most prudent, and helped guide the County out of the pandemic.
In 2023, Ryan was appointed Director of CountyStat, leading a team of data analysts to measure County agency effectiveness, advance priority initiatives, and improve delivery of government services. The youngest director in County government, Ryan made innovation a cornerstone of his leadership. His team created prompt payment dashboards to ensure vendors contracting with County government were paid on time, collaborated with the State’s Attorney to establish restitution as a penalty for individuals convicted of illegal dumping offenses, reduced County government time to hire from 120 days to under 70 days, and liaised with state and local elected officials and civic associations to ensure service delivery data was reflected on the ground.
Community service is not only a professional matter for Ryan, it is personal. For years, Ryan served as a mentor in Big Brothers, Big Sisters of America. In 2018, he was elected President of the J. Franklyn Bourne Bar Association, the largest and most active specialty bar association in Maryland. That same year, he was appointed to the Maryland Bar Character Committee, where he interviews and examines application materials for candidates to the state bar. In 2023, Maryland Governor Wes Moore appointed Ryan to the Maryland Council on Open Data. Ryan was elected to represent Maryland’s 4th Congressional District as a Delegate at the 2024 Democratic National Convention, casting his vote to nominate Vice President Kamala D. Harris to represent the party in the general election.
Ryan lives in Maryland with his wife Dr. Jasmine Reed-Middleton and their son, Rowen. Ryan and his family worship at and are members of the First Baptist Church of District Heights.
