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Carrie Giddins, recently departed Iowa Democratic Party communications director, was named the top political operative to watch by the Politico. Giddins, 33, left the IDP after a year stint there where she coordinated press coverage for the Iowa caucus -- an endeavor that had her working with over 3,000 journalists from around the globe. She is currently heading into the beltway, where she plans to start her own political communications consulting firm.

...Giddins' role in Iowa wasn't strictly limited to communications. She also helped manage the three major political events in Iowa — the Hall of Fame dinner, the Jefferson-Jackson Dinner and the caucuses — all of which attracted a huge media presence.

"The burden all falls on the state party for the caucus," Giddins said. "From creating primers on how to run a caucus, to raising the money to put them on, to picking the site, to reporting the numbers — ... that's all something that happens with the 20 people in the state party here."

She also worked closely alongside the Iowa Republican Party's communications director, Mary Tiffany, and they jointly organized the press filing center at the Polk County Convention Complex, where thousands of reporters filed live on caucus night.

"We became friends and were able to vent to each other about our own jobs even though politically our views were different," Tiffany said.

"I've never seen someone who's so on top of everything. She's extremely detail-oriented," said Tiffany. "It was never competitive. Reporters would call me to ask if a candidate had come to Iowa; I would always tell them to talk to Carrie."

And after the Iowa caucuses, when many of the weary staff members just wanted to take a break, Giddins hopped on a flight to Las Vegas, where she helped the Nevada Democratic Party organize its own caucuses, acting as an assistant to the state party's communications director. ...

In all, the Politico listed 50 people in various areas of politics that are up-and-coming.