Juli Briskman

{{Infobox officeholder

| name = Juli Briskman

| birth_name = Juli Ellyn Klyce

| image = File:Juli Briskman.jpg

| caption = Juli Briskman

| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1967|3|16}}

| occupation = Politician, marketing analyst, journalist

| known_for = Gesture towards American President Donald Trump

| children = 2

| alma_mater = Ohio State University (BA)
Johns Hopkins University (MBA)

| office = Member of the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors from the Algonkian District

| termstart = January 1, 2020

| predecessor = Suzanne Volpe

| party = Democratic

| website = http://Loudoun.gov/Algonkian

}}

Juli Ellyn Briskman ({{née}} Klyce; born March 16, 1967) is an American politician, marketing analyst, and journalist. She is a supervisor for the Algonkian District of Loudoun County, Virginia.{{cite web|url=https://www.loudoun.gov/2232/Algonkian-Supervisor-Juli-E-Briskman|title=Algonkian District Supervisor Juli E. Briskman|website=Loudoun County Official Website|accessdate=January 23, 2020}} Briskman garnered international attention for flipping off then-President Donald Trump in Sterling, Virginia, as he returned from a golfing trip in 2017.{{cite web |last1=Arnholz |first1=Jack |title=Cyclist who famously flipped off Trump motorcade wins election in Virginia |url=https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/cyclist-famously-flipped-off-trump-motorcade-wins-election/story?id=66791339 |website=ABC News |publisher=ABC News |access-date=13 April 2025 |archive-url=https://archive.ph/ArWHO |archive-date=28 Aug 2021 |language=en |date=6 November 2019 |quote=Juli Briskman,... lost her job after a photographer took a picture of her raising her middle finger to Trump's presidential motorcade... |url-status=live}} She once again received international attention when she was elected to the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors in 2019.{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/nov/09/trump-middle-finger-julie-briskman-virginia|title='I don't regret it': how Juli Briskman went from giving Trump the finger to winning an election|work=The Guardian|last=Noor|first=Poppy|date=November 9, 2019}}

Early life

Briskman is originally from the Columbus, Ohio, metropolitan area and graduated from Worthington High School, where she was a field hockey athlete, in 1985.{{cite web|url=https://www.dispatch.com/news/20171107/woman-who-flipped-off-trump-says-she-learned-values-growing-up-in-central-ohio|title=Woman who flipped off Trump says she learned values growing up in central Ohio|work=The Columbus Dispatch|access-date=November 6, 2019|archive-date=November 9, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109082725/https://www.dispatch.com/news/20171107/woman-who-flipped-off-trump-says-she-learned-values-growing-up-in-central-ohio|url-status=dead}} She graduated from Ohio State University in 1990, with a degree in journalism. She worked for the school newspaper, The Lantern.{{cite web|url=https://www.thelantern.com/2017/11/flipping-the-bird-how-an-ohio-state-alumna-hit-virality/|title=FLIPPING THE BIRD: HOW AN OHIO STATE ALUMNA HIT VIRALITY|work=The Lantern|date=November 21, 2017 }} She received an MBA in marketing from Johns Hopkins University's Carey Business School in 1998.{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/the-cyclist-who-flipped-off-trumps-motorcade-is-running-for-public-office/2018/09/11/c12cc2d2-b5dc-11e8-a7b5-adaaa5b2a57f_story.html|title=The cyclist who flipped off Trump's motorcade is running for public office|newspaper=Washington Post}}

Career

Briskman interned for the Kuwait Times, where she made news for escaping to Saudi Arabia as the Iraqis invaded Kuwait. She worked at the U.S. Department of State as a community liaison officer for eight years, including at embassies in Riga, Latvia and Almaty, Kazakhstan. After leaving the State Department, she was in the admissions and marketing departments at Village Green Day School. She was a marketing analyst at several companies until the beginning of 2019, including as chief marketing officer of a health-care company in Chantilly, Virginia.{{cite web|url=https://loudounnow.com/2018/09/12/loudouner-known-for-flipping-off-trump-runs-for-supervisor/|title=Loudouner Known for Flipping Off Trump Runs for Supervisor|work=Loudoun Now|date=September 12, 2018 }} She received a certificate in digital marketing from Georgetown University in 2017.{{cite web |url=https://upichealth.com/juli-briskman/ |title=Biography: Juli Briskman, Chief Marketing Officer |website=UPICHealth.com |publisher=UPIC Health |location=Chantilly, VA |access-date=February 6, 2021 |archive-date=November 10, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211110011643/https://upichealth.com/juli-briskman/ |url-status=dead }}

= Middle finger controversy =

On October 28, 2017, Briskman was riding her bike in Sterling, Virginia, when the Trump motorcade passed her as he departed Trump National Golf Club Washington, D.C.{{cite web|url=https://www.vogue.com/article/juli-briskman-flipped-off-trump-wins-virginia-election|title=Juli Briskman, Who Was Fired for Flipping Off Trump, Has Won an Election in Virginia|work=Vogue|publisher=Condé Nast |location=New York, NY|last=Ruiz|first=Michelle|date=November 6, 2019}} She flipped her middle finger as Trump rode by, which was caught on camera by a photographer.{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/nov/06/juli-briskman-trump-middle-finger-wins-office-virginia|title=Woman who gave Trump the finger elected in Virginia|last=Holpuch|first=Amanda|date=November 6, 2019|work=The Guardian|access-date=November 7, 2019}} Briskman had worked as a marketing analyst for Akima, a government contractor, for eight months until she was fired for using the viral photo as her Facebook cover photo and her Twitter profile picture. She sued for wrongful termination as another employee also had "obscene content," which it was her job to flag, on his social media accounts, but was allowed to remove it. Her claim was not upheld in court because Virginia's at-will employment laws do not cover free speech, but the judge granted Briskman the full severance pay she was owed.{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/she-flipped-off-president-trump--and-got-fired-from-her-government-contracting-job/2017/11/06/4cf1af9a-c2da-11e7-84bc-5e285c7f4512_story.html|title=She flipped off President Trump — and got fired from her government contracting job|newspaper=Washington Post}}

= 2019 election =

In 2019, Briskman, a Democrat, was elected to the Algonkian District seat of the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors, defeating eight-year incumbent Suzanne M. Volpe.{{cite web|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/woman-who-flipped-off-trump-juli-briskman-cyclist-finger-president-motorcade-wins-virginia-election-loudoun-county/|title=Woman who was fired for flipping off Trump wins election in Virginia|work=CBS News|last=Silverstein|first=Jason|date=November 7, 2019}} She described herself as running on policies such as environmentalism, education, and women's rights, rather than the notice she received for flipping off the president.{{cite web|url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/cyclist-who-flipped-off-trump-wins-local-election/|title=Cyclist who flipped off Trump wins local election|work=The Times of Israel|date=November 7, 2019 }} The Washington Post described her victory as "fabulous revenge,"{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/juli-briskmans-fabulous-revenge-run-and-the-people-getting-elected-to-get-even/2019/11/07/9d935920-017c-11ea-9518-1e76abc088b6_story.html|title=Juli Briskman's fabulous revenge run, and the people getting elected to get even|newspaper=The Washington Post|last=Dvorak|first=Petula}} and Gerard Baker of London's The Times noted that it highlighted President Trump's perceived issues with suburban American women.

Personal life

Briskman moved to Loudoun County in the early 2000s. She is the mother of two with her ex-husband. Briskman has also worked part-time as a yoga instructor.