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In 2005, Stampp Corbin sold RetroBox, a company that helps corporations recycle and dispose of outdated computer equipment. Though he had been politically active enough to serve as an outside adviser to the Small Business Administration under President Bill Clinton, he had no particular interest in turning to politics. But that all changed when the husband of a former schoolmate--he attended the same Chicago high school as Michelle Obama--decided to run for President. "When the opportunity came, given my relationship to the Obamas, I wanted to get involved," says Corbin, who signed on as the senator's liaison to the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender, or GLBT, community.

Today Corbin oversees all aspects of the campaign's GLBT efforts, from outreach and messaging to policy positions. That job got unexpectedly complicated last fall when Obama invited Donnie McClurkin, a pastor who had repeatedly made anti-gay remarks, to sing at a campaign concert. In political circles, this was seen as a gaffe, as all the Democratic candidates have been courting the GLBT community.

Rather than try to downplay the controversy, Corbin attempted to put a positive spin on it by suggesting that his candidate was uniquely positioned to bring together gays and African Americans, two of the Democrats' core constituencies that have sometimes been at odds. "A great many African Americans share Pastor McClurkin's beliefs," Corbin said in a joint statement that he issued and that was signed by African American religious leaders and pro-Obama gay rights activists. "It is clear that Barack Obama is the only candidate who has made bringing these two often disparate groups together a goal."

In an interview with The Advocate, a gay newsmagazine, Obama himself reiterated this message: "Part of what I have done in my campaign and in my career is be willing to go to churches and talk to ministers and tell them exactly what I think. And go straight at some of these issues of homophobia that exist in the church in a way that no other candidate has done. I believe that's important." Will voters buy this logic? That remains to be seen.

Gary Hirshberg
Barack Obama's most prominent New Hampshire fundraiser
President and CEO, Stonyfield Farm
Londonderry, New Hampshire

Gary Hirshberg's endorsement wasn't supposed to be up for grabs. A self-described social entrepreneur and political junkie, Hirshberg is also a Democratic fundraising giant in the earliest primary state, so his support is coveted. When former Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack entered the race for President, in November 2006, Hirshberg agreed to back him. But when the news broke last February that Vilsack was dropping out, Hirshberg received phone calls within a day from every remaining candidate--except Hillary Clinton, whose electability he had already doubted publicly.

Hirshberg, who held a fundraiser for Obama in his home, says he chose the Illinois senator over his rivals because he has an "ability to give an ear to all sides." News of the endorsement made The Boston Globe and U.S. News & World Report's politics blog, which declared that Obama had won "the yogurt primary."

So far, Hirshberg has advised Obama to tout his support for sustainability as a national security issue. By depending more on local natural resources, Hirshberg argues, the U.S. will be less dependent on foreign oil. Having built his organic dairy into a leading business in the state, Hirshberg is well positioned to use his reputation and financial resources to marshal donations for Obama. More important, Hirshberg is, in campaign parlance, a verifier--someone whose support may well persuade others to pull the lever for his candidate, as well as someone who can act as a powerful proxy when the candidate isn't around. Of course, there's a limit to how much he can sway New Hampshire voters. It is worth remembering that Hirshberg backed Howard Dean in 2004.

Deborah Jallad
Rudy Giuliani's Florida supporter
President and chair, Accredited Surety and Casualty
Winter Park, Florida

No state has been more crucial to presidential candidates in recent cycles than Florida, in both the primaries and the general election. And winning there is even more important to a moderate Republican like Rudy Giuliani, who hopes to draw on the state's large number of New York transplants to put him over the top--and thus give him padding against any primary losses he faces in the more conservative states.

All that means a lot is riding on Deborah Jallad's efforts to turn out cash and voters in the Sunshine State for the former New York City mayor. As co-chair of Florida Business Leaders for Rudy, Jallad has to line up business owners and executives to support the Giuliani campaign, primarily through copious donations. Her husband, Johnny, is also active in the campaign, serving as Giuliani's finance chair for central Florida. Last fall, the couple brought the candidate to Orlando for a breakfast meeting with women business owners and brought in $100,000 through a fundraiser at their home.

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