Forest native Roshan Patel has always had a passion for politics and is currently in the epicenter of American politics in Washington D.C. Patel is a partner at 50 State a political and corporate consulting firm.
He has risen through the political ranks by working on numerous state and national campaigns, overseeing fund raising for a Democratic political action committee and serving as the National Finance Director for the Democratic Governors Association. He has come a long way since first arriving in Washington in 2006 with only his ability, passion and determination. He made the move without a job, and for the first few weeks he was couch hopping at friends’ houses. It did not take Patel long to find his footing and he has steadily worked to become a trusted political advisor with an office mere blocks from the United States Capitol Building and the White House.
The successes Patel has achieved all started at home with the close-knit Patel family. His mother and father, Raman and Jayshree, are decades-long Forest residents and raised three successful sons in Scott County. Patel has used the support from his tight knit family and his deep seeded competitive nature as the foundation of his professional climb.
“My family has always been important to me,” he said. “I could not have asked for a better family or a better upbringing. My parents always made sure that I had every chance to succeed in everything I did and were always there for support which has been so important to me.”
Patel and his two older brothers, Sunay and Abhay, have an unbreakable bound and support one another in everything they do. All three Patel brothers were stand out athletes in multiple sports during their younger years. Their love for sports and the good-natured competitiveness between the brothers instilled a winning edge in Roshan from an early age.
“I have always been really close with both my brothers,” Patel said. “We are always there for one another and will do anything to help each other. It is extremely comforting to know I always have them by my side and nothing will ever change that fact.”
In politics one must excel in a team-oriented environment. Just as in sports, the ultimate goal is winning the race for political office with no prize for the runner-up. Those who know Patel best know that these are attributes that he has possessed since childhood.
Growing up in Forest, sports played a major role during Patel’s youth. His father Raman coached Patel, his brothers and countless other athletes in numerous organized sports.
All three boys were superb tennis players and the coaching of their father, and total family support earned the Patel family the Mississippi Tennis Family of the Year in 1988.
Patel was an accomplished tennis player in Mississippi and on the national level at an early age. He spent countless hours on tennis courts and ball fields around Scott County where he enjoyed great success. He loved playing tennis, but he was drawn more to team sports and the comradery that comes with being a part of a team.
“I’m smiling right now just thinking back to all the times I enjoyed growing up and playing sports with my friends and teammates.” Patel said. “We had some really, really great times and we always had so much support from our families and our coaches. Those are memories I can still remember like yesterday and things I will never forget.”
During his sophomore year at Forest High School Patel was met with a tough decision that would change the course of his life. He was accepted to the Mississippi School for Mathematics and Science, just as his brother Abhay before him. This was a great achievement, but it would come at a big cost for the young Patel. In order to attend MSMS and focus on his academic growth, Patel would have to give up playing high school athletics and leave behind his beloved friends. While the decision was hard it is one that he has zero regrets about. He believes it was his choice to focus on academics that paved the path to where he is today.
After graduating from MSMS in 1998, Patel moved on to earn his Bachelor’s Degree in Finance from Mississippi State University. It was during his junior and senior years at MSU that he had his first opportunity to see the American political system at work firsthand.
“Politics has always been a passion of mine,” Patel said. “I have followed it as long as I can remember and I have always loved talking politics with my family. During my junior and senior year at State I finally got to be part of the political process when I interned both of those years. I knew back then that I was hooked.”
During the two years he interned in Washington with the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. It was during this time as an intern that politics put a hook in him that would remain until his return to Washington in 2006.
After graduating from MSU he did not immediately look to work in politics. He accepted a position with International Paper in Memphis, Tennessee, but it would not be long until his unbreakable bond with his brothers would change the trajectory of Patel’s future.
While working for IP, Patel’s brother Abhay was attending law school in Boston. At that time, he was struggling in his studies due to a degenerative eye disease. Abhay suffered from Juvenile Macular Degenerative disease which caused problems due to the rigorous studying required in law school. As they have always done when one of them needs help, the Patel brothers teamed up to confront the problem head on.
“When Abhay was having trouble in law school we all started talking and trying to figure out anything that would help him and any other students that had problems reading text books,” Patel said.
Partnering with both of his older brothers the Patels founded Huge Print Press. Located in Dallas, the company printed large print text books for students who had trouble reading standardized textbooks. “My brother Sunay was living in Dallas at that time so we decided to base the company there,” Patel said. “It probably didn’t hurt that all three of us were Dallas Cowboy fans.”
After resigning his position with IP, Patel spent the next three years traveling the country visiting schools to push the specialized textbooks. The company would stay in business for five years and enjoy monetary success as well as assist Abhay who graduated from law school at Boston University.
Three years into the brotherly business endeavor the political hook in Patel pulled him to Washington. He knew it was time and followed his long desired aspirations to become involved in American politics.
“I moved to Washington without a job or a place to live,” Patel said. “For the first three weeks or so I lived on my friend’s couch and then I got a job working with the Ben Cardin Campaign in Maryland. I was excited to be working on my first campaign and we would have great success. Then Congressman Cardin, went on to win the primary race and defeat Michael Steele in the general election for the U.S. Senate seat. After that I was all in.”
The following few years would find Patel moving from one campaign to another which is the norm. “When you are working on campaigns and the race is over your not really sure where your next job is going be,” explained Patel. “Unless you really have it all figured out, when one job ends you have a couple of weeks, or a couple of months, when you are trying to figure out the next job. When an opportunity presents itself you have to be ready to get on board and get to work.”
After helping Senator Cardin win the Maryland Senate Race Patel went on to work on numerous additional campaigns soaking up the knowledge and experience that is so abundant on the campaign trails. “There is really something special about working on a campaign,” he said. “Traveling the country and getting to meet and work with people from all over the country is an experience I will always be thankful for. I learned so much during that time and made many lifelong contacts.”
Patel followed this same pattern from 2006 through 2010 working on as many as six Democratic campaigns. Looking back, Patel said that he found working on campaigns brought back found memories of his competitive days playing team sports.
“Campaigns are like team sports and I love the team aspect,” he said. “Working on those campaigns really helped fulfill my competitive drive. Working on campaigns is also like running a small business. One day you may be on the phone asking supporters for donations and the next day you may be sweeping the floors at headquarters, but you do whatever’s necessary. You figure out pretty quickly that you are part of a team working towards a common goal and you want to do anything you can to help the team succeed.”
It was during his campaigning days that Patel was introduced to the young woman that would become his teammate for life. He met his wife, Meredith, while working on the Richardson Presidential Campaign in 2008. The couple would go on to get married in 2018.
“I think the people you meet and work with are truly amazing,” he said. “It’s just the people and something you take with you for life. Literally. I met my wife during the Richardson campaign and I know that will be a blessing I will cherish for the rest of my life.”
Patel said after four years on the road he was ready to slow down if just a little. “Working campaigns is a young man’s job,” he said. “After over four years on the campaign trail I was ready to set my roots.”
Patel moved on from the campaign trail to oversee interns at the Democratic Senatorial Committee for multiple years. From 2011 through 2014 Patel served as the National Finance Director for the Democratic Governors Association. The DGA supports and helps fund gubernatorial races in every state around the country. “Having the opportunity to be hands on with every governors race in America is an experience I will always remember.” he said.
After his tenure as director of finance Patel moved closer to setting those permanent roots when he joined his current consulting firm 50 States in 2014.
Patel said it was his upbringing in Scott County that gave him the knowledge, drive and respect that has served him well. “Forest will always be home and I would not have traded growing up there for anything,” he said. “I would not have wanted to grow up anywhere other than Forest and Scott County. I always saw the community come together for everything and it is something I will never forget. I still say yes ma’am and yes sir because to me that is normal. That is the only way I know and it has always served me well. My family has always supported me and been there for me and I do the same. It’s my family and growing up where I did that made me who I am.”
As Patel pushes 40, he has numerous accomplishments, memories, and has gained invaluable knowledge and experience. Now that he has set his roots in the nations capital the only question is what do the next few decades hold for him. Whatever that may be it’s clear that this Scott Countian will use family, competitive drive, and lessons learned from home in everything he accomplishes.
