Founder
Ayo Banjo
Founder & Principal
Ayo Banjo is a civil rights organizer and strategist. As project director of a countywide youth mental-health initiative in Monterey County, he led a team of 25 staff, clinicians, and youth leaders, and grew the partner network from 2 to 38 organizations while activating 53 corporate, civic, school, and community partners. He founded Banjo Strategies in 2022 and chairs Project Plenty, a 16-county central California coalition. His work spans strategic communications, narrative campaigns, civic engagement, public affairs, and movement infrastructure, with fluency in the campaign and CRM systems organizations actually run on.
Recognitions
- Recognized by the California State Assembly
- Recognized by the California State Senate
- Recognized by the Monterey County Board of Supervisors
Sectors and expertise
- Campaigns and electoral strategy
- Nonprofits and foundations
- Universities and civic institutions
- Coalitions and movement infrastructure
Writing and speaking
- Op-eds on California civic leadership · CalMatters · 2025
- Coverage and commentary · Good Times Santa Cruz · 2023
The road here
Track record
- 2026
Campaigns and recognition
Two live California campaigns. Recognized by the California State Assembly and the Monterey County Board of Supervisors. Continues as chair of Project Plenty.
- State Assembly recognition
- Monterey County Board of Supervisors recognition
- Two live campaigns this cycle
- 2024
Project Plenty
Chairs the central-region coalition spanning 16 California counties and more than six million Californians, convening statewide candidates and next-generation leaders.
- 16-county coalition
- Lieutenant governor candidate convenings
- 2023
Institutional work
UC Santa Cruz inclusive recruitment panels with national leaders from the NAACP, United Way, and Microsoft. Organizational leadership at Santa Cruz Black across program, marketing, and events.
- UCSC inclusive panels
- Santa Cruz Black
- Climatize
- Musical Soulmates Collective
- 2022
Founding of Banjo Strategies
Banjo Strategies launches as a California consultancy rooted in community engagement, serving its first nonprofit and university clients.
- Firm founded
- First nonprofit clients
- First university work