Sunburn — The morning read of what’s hot in Florida politics — 10.11.22

 Good Tuesday morning.

Ballard Partners is opening its first office on the West Coast office in Los Angeles.

The new office will be led by Wendy Bruget, who is joining the firm as a partner and will lead the opening of the Los Angeles office. Jason Ziven will serve as senior adviser and firm partner Tola Thompson and strategic partner Tom Cerra will also offer client services from the new office.

“Opening an office in Los Angeles will allow our firm’s exceptional partners to better serve the firm’s 500-plus clients,” said Brian Ballard, the firm’s president and founder. “We are proud to enter the California market with our first office in Los Angeles. Wendy, Jason, Tola and Tom are the dream team for us to establish our initial presence in California.”

Bruget has been a government relations professional and union organizer in Los Angeles for more than 20 years. For the past seven years, she has served as the Director of Government Affairs at the largest independently owned waste and recycling company in Los Angeles County.

“The firm’s national reputation and unwavering commitment to exceptional client service was incredibly attractive to me,” Bruget said. “I am delighted to be joining Ballard Partners and look forward to serving the firm’s clients in California.”

Ziven is an attorney at Sanders Roberts. His practice focuses on all aspects of business litigation, and his clients include Fortune 100 companies, high-profile entertainers and public figures. He also advises musicians, writers, actors and directors on entertainment transactions.

Before joining Sanders Roberts, he served as Director of Business Development at Mills Entertainment, a division of Creative Artists Agency. While at Mills, Ziven negotiated multiple licensing and touring agreements with the largest entertainment companies and was globally recognized.

___

This is a BFD — Global public strategy firm Mercury announced the addition of top political strategist and government relations expert Eric Johnson as Managing Director in its Florida office.

Johnson brings more than 30 years of political and government experience in Washington, D.C. and Florida at the local, state and federal levels.

“Eric is a pro at what he does and a fixture in Florida and D.C. politics. Over the years, he’s addressed major public affairs challenges and led key strategic communications efforts for national political leaders, corporations and nonprofits,” said Mercury Partner Ashley Walker. “We are thrilled to have Eric join the Mercury team and deliver exceptional work to our clients.”

Before joining Mercury, Johnson founded Johnson Strategies, where he served as a political adviser and media consultant for candidates seeking public office at all levels. Johnson has also served as Chief of Staff to Democratic former U.S. Reps. Robert Wexler and Patrick Murphy as well as running winning campaigns for U.S. Reps. Ted Deutch and Murphy, who defeated Republican former U.S. Rep. Allen West in what was at the time the nation’s most expensive congressional election in history.

Most recently, he served as the strategist for former Florida Division of Emergency Management Director Jared Moskowitz’s congressional campaign.

“I am honored to be joining the team of experts at Mercury,” Johnson said. “I look forward to continuing my commitment of lifting up the next generation of leaders and organizations while providing successful outcomes for our clients at Mercury.”

___

Tampa Bay-based lobbying firm RSA Consulting is promoting Kaitlyn Bailey to Director of Client Experience and Strategy.

Bailey, who joined RSA in 2016, will oversee client services at the boutique firm known for its team-centered and client-tailored approach. In her new role and as a member of the executive leadership team, Bailey will focus on company-wide growth, strategic oversight of client relations, and implementing innovative solutions to further enhance the client experience.

“Kaitlyn’s dedication to client experience and attention to detail is truly something special,” said RSA Consulting president and CEO Ron Pierce. “In her years with RSA, she’s driven some of our most innovative client projects with resounding success. Her work continues to elevate our suite of services and ensures that as we grow, every client still feels like they are our only client.”

RSA Consulting’s client roster includes some of the Tampa Bay region’s most notable names — the Tampa Bay Lightning, the Straz Center for Performing Arts, Tampa Theatre and United Way Suncoast.

“Kaitlyn advances RSA to be a true customer experience organization. She has a brilliant sensitivity for clients’ unique needs and the strategic insight and talent to bring her creative ideas to life,” said RSA Consulting vice president and COO Natalie King.

Over the last five years as a lobbyist at the firm, Bailey has secured many legislative and appropriation wins for clients across a variety of industries, including transportation, economic development, education and mental health. In 2021, she was named one of Florida Politics’ 30 under 30 Rising Stars.

___

A couple of other thoughts:

— Casey DeSantis’ gut-wrenching testimonial about her cancer battle is undeniable gold for Team DeSantis: An ad featuring the First Lady issuing an emotional endorsement of her husband, not just as Governor of the great state of Florida, but as a devoted husband and father, is sure to bring anyone to gentle tears. “If you want to know who Ron DeSantis really is, when I was diagnosed with cancer, and I was facing the battle for my life, he was the dad who took care of my children when I couldn’t. He was there to pick me off the ground when I literally could not stand,” Mrs. DeSantis says through her own choked-back tears. There is literally no substantive way to criticize this ad. It is artistically brilliant. And it definitely won’t hurt the DeSantis camp.

— 2022 is not another ‘Year of the Woman’: Four years ago, Democrats elected a record number of women to congressional seats. In 2020, the GOP reciprocated with its own “Year of the Woman.” This year is not shaping up to be the same. A FiveThirtyEight analysis of major party candidates for U.S. House and Senate and Governors’ races found the number of women running this November is lower than two years ago. Women are 51% of the voting-age population in the U.S., but just 27% of candidates in Primary races for any of the evaluated races. Still, the analysis found Democrats have provided more opportunities for women in politics than Republicans. More here.

— New outlet seeks to identify trends in state legislatures: Veteran Beltway journalist Reid Wilson launched a startup news outlet called Pluribus News, which is tackling state legislature coverage with a new lens: Cover all 50 at the same time. The premise is brilliant, if not obvious. “What happens in Sacramento or Albany or Austin today happens in 25 states next year and then federally after that,” Wilson told The New York Times. The new outlet aims to not only fill a void created as newspapers become increasingly strapped for reporters but add a new angle that focuses on broader policy trends from one state to the next.

— If you’re looking for a second opinion on who are the most powerful lobbyists in the state, The Florida Standard has you covered. The first entry of its Top 25 list, which includes Nos. 21-25, went live Monday. Five more will be revealed today.

— SITUATIONAL AWARENESS —

—@FLSurgeonGen: I love the discussion that we’ve stimulated. Isn’t it great when we discuss science transparently instead of trying to cancel one another? I’m going to respond to the more substantive critiques.

—@EricTopol: An isolation period of 5 days after COVID is totally inadequate for most people. New report from >63,000 people. Negative rapid tests are an essential guide

—@JimmyPatronis: Every day, I’m proud to meet with more of the heroes dedicated to Hurricane #Ian response. Thank you to Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office for your support of Southwest Florida residents and their recovery efforts. We are in this together and together we will come back stronger.

—@HeadBoatWasher: Folks, I’ve heard stay safe so many times in the last two weeks, and I appreciate But I think it’s time we switch it up. How about we say Be well! What do you think?

—@FlaSqueeze: Monday thought: Obviously @AlLawsonJr endorsed Nick Maddox as a favor to Sean Pittman. But I wish both of them hadn’t wasted the favor on something so unworthy.

Tweet, tweet:

Scenes from the Emerson Alumni Hall at the University of Florida, where students are protesting the likely appointment of Republican Nebraska Senator Ben Sasse as the next UF President pic.twitter.com/4tTM7oVnrZ

— Ethan Eibe (@EthanEibe) October 10, 2022

—@Stfn42: Well, it took 29 years, but I finally watched the original Jurassic Park, a cautionary tale about understaffing your engineering department and letting people push code directly to prod.

— DAYS UNTIL —

‘Before You Vote’ TV debates (Senate) — 7; NBA season tips off — 7; Taylor Swift’s ‘Midnights’ release — 10; the Gubernatorial General Election debate — 13; Florida Chamber Annual Meeting & Future of Florida Forum — 13; Cormac McCarthy’s ‘The Passenger’ releases — 14; Jon Meacham’s ‘And There Was Light: Abraham Lincoln and the American Struggle’ releases — 14; City & State Florida Digital Summit — 16; Early voting begins for General Election — 18; 2022 General Election — 28; ‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’ premieres — 31; ‘Captain Marvel 2′ premieres — 31; FITCon 2022 begins — 37; ‘The Flash’ premieres — 37; The World Cup kicks off in Qatar — 41; The U.S. World Cup Soccer Team begins play — 44; Florida TaxWatch’s Annual Meeting begins — 53; ‘Willow’ premieres on Disney+ — 53; McCarthy’s ‘Stella Maris’ releases — 56; ‘Avatar 2’ premieres — 66; final Broadway performance of ‘The Music Man’ with Hugh Jackman — 82; Bruce Springsteen launches his 2023 tour in Tampa — 113; ‘Ant Man and the Wasp: Quantumania’ premieres — 129; final performance of ‘Phantom of the Opera’ on Broadway — 130; 2023 Legislative Session convenes — 147; ‘John Wick: Chapter 4′ premieres — 164; American Association of Political Consultants Pollies ’23 conference begins — 189; 2023 Session Sine Die — 206; ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3’ premieres — 206; ‘Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse’ premieres — 234; Christopher Nolan’s ‘Oppenheimer’ premieres — 283; ‘Blade’ reboot premieres — 388; ‘Dune: Part Two’ premieres — 402; ‘Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse’ Part 2 premieres — 535; Opening Ceremony of the 2024 Olympic Games — 654; ‘Thunderbolts’ premieres — 654; ‘Fantastic Four’ reboot premieres — 759; ‘Avengers: The Kang Dynasty’ premieres — 937.

Sunburn is authored and assembled by Peter Schorsch, Phil Ammann, Daniel Dean, Renzo Downey, Jacob Ogles, and Drew Wilson.

The post Sunburn — The morning read of what’s hot in Florida politics — 10.11.22 appeared first on Florida Politics – Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government..