Vote Solar Board of Directors Elects Former Department of Energy Chief of Staff Tarak Shah as Board Chair
Vote Solar today announced the election of Tarak Shah as Chair of the Board. A nationally recognized clean energy policy and political expert, Shah brings more than a decade of leadership experience advancing climate and energy solutions at the highest levels of government.
“Tarak has spent his career turning ambitious clean energy goals into real-world policy and implementation,” said Vote Solar Executive Director, Sachu Constantine. “At a time when states are leading the charge toward a more affordable, reliable, and accessible energy system, his experience navigating complex energy policy, deployment, and political strategy will be invaluable to Vote Solar’s mission and impact.”
Shah most recently served as Chief of Staff for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) in the Biden-Harris Administration, where he led the largest reorganization in DOE history, including the creation of a new office dedicated to clean energy demonstration and deployment. He also played a key role in revitalizing DOE’s Loan Programs Office, restarting appliance efficiency standards, advancing industrial decarbonization initiatives, and embedding equity, justice, domestic manufacturing, and workforce priorities into federal energy investments.
Shah currently is helping organize a growing network of former DOE leaders and staff working to sustain momentum on America’s clean energy transition, reflecting a broader effort to keep experienced federal energy experts actively engaged in advancing durable climate progress. Earlier in his career, he worked at the Pentagon on military energy optimization initiatives and the White House Council on Environmental Quality.
“Vote Solar has consistently been at the forefront of advancing bold state-level clean energy policies that lower costs, expand access, and build a more resilient energy system for all,” said Shah. “As the energy transition accelerates, organizations like Vote Solar are essential to ensuring communities across the country can benefit from solar solutions, and ultimately a cleaner, more resilient, more affordable energy system. I’m honored to serve as Board Chair and support that work.”
Shah succeeds outgoing Board Chair Zaid Ashai, who has served as Vote Solar’s Chair of the Board since 2019.
“On behalf of Vote Solar, I want to express deep gratitude to Zaid for his outstanding leadership as Board Chair,” said Constantine. “He has helped guide the organization through a period of sharpened strategic focus and deepened impact in state-level clean energy advocacy, strengthening both our vision and our ability to deliver meaningful change across the country.”
Vote Solar’s Board of Directors guides the organization’s long-term strategic direction and supports its mission to advance affordable solar solutions across the country.