About BPN

Founding members

Board members of Black Political Network.

Kelyn Lanier

Co-founderBoard Member

Kelyn Lanier is the founder of Black Political Network and a bit of a dark horse in the political landscape. He has been a business owner since 2008, starting in the independent pharmacy sector before moving into consulting and tech, and his path into lobbying started outside the Capitol before it ever led inside it. He got his start in politics as a citizen lobbyist working on Second Amendment civil rights issues. From there, Kelyn moved into state lobbying, establishing Yorkson Public Affairs, focused on civil rights, violence reduction policy, agriculture, and a wide range of issues that require trust across the aisle. His recent work has included police conduct reform and agricultural policy aimed at rolling back government overreach that has historically disadvantaged Black landowners and producers, alongside broader efforts in social issues and economic opportunity. He has developed a reputation for direct advocacy and durable relationships with legislators from both parties. Black Political Network grew from conversations with politicians and political professionals who saw a gap in how lobbyists, advocates, and activists from underrepresented communities in the state were organized. His focus across ventures has been on building something that provides his greater community with a way to organize and continue the pursuit of excellence. In his free time, Kelyn is a husband, father, target sports enthusiast, and business owner.

Danielle Young-Kombo

Co-founderBoard Member

Danielle Young-Kombo is a contract lobbyist for Colorado Ceasefire Legislative Action, an organization advocating for gun violence prevention. She currently serves as the Vice President of the League of Women Voters of Colorado and Chair of the NAACP Aurora Political Action Committee, and is the former Vice President of Colorado Black Women for Political Action. Danielle is also a business owner and the CEO and principal consultant at D.K. Global Consulting, LLC. In 2018, she made history as the first woman of color to win a Democratic primary election in Colorado House District 45. She continued her political career with a run for the U.S. Senate in 2019 and served as the Women's Vote Director for the Colorado Coordinated Campaign during the 2020 Biden-Harris presidential campaign. Danielle previously worked as a White House Advance Associate for the Office of the Vice President. In 2020, she was selected as a political partner for the Colorado Chapter of the Truman National Security Project. Before entering politics, she worked in healthcare as a physician recruiter and primary care clinic leader, having studied Healthcare Administration at Colorado State University. Outside of her professional work, Danielle enjoys spending time with her family in Aurora, watching NBA basketball, and attending track and field competitions. She and her husband of 23 years have four sons.

Yarkenda Payne-Diallo

Co-founderBoard Member

Yarkenda Payne-Diallo is helping shape the future of Black political power and racial repair in Colorado. As the Managing Director of Justice for Black Coloradans, she leads statewide efforts that transform lived truth into policy action, building strategies that confront systemic harm, expand opportunity, and advance long-term equity for Black communities. With a foundation in education, community development, and strategic policy design, Yarkenda works at the intersection of advocacy, systems change, and narrative power. Her leadership spans affordable housing, preventive health care, economic mobility, voting rights, and criminal justice reform, with a focus on ensuring policy is informed by the lived experiences, history, and aspirations of Black Coloradans. Known for building influential cross-sector coalitions and mobilizing community-centered solutions, Yarkenda brings together government, philanthropy, researchers, advocates, and residents to move bold ideas into action. Her work challenges institutions to move beyond symbolic commitments toward measurable structural change. At the core of her leadership is a belief that Black futures must be intentionally imagined, designed, funded, and protected. She believes communities should not be treated as beneficiaries of change, but as architects of their own liberation and possibility. Yarkenda serves as the Vice President of Colorado Black Women for Political Action (CBWPA) and the Social Justice Chair of the Mu Omega Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated. She prioritizes joy and rest through date nights with her husband, Oumar, attending church, traveling, book-hopping, and chasing solar eclipses.