Archive for “July, 2024”

MERCURY EXPANDS ILLINOIS TEAM

July 22, 2024 / No Comments

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Hannah Knoch, [email protected]

July 22, 2024

MERCURY EXPANDS ILLINOIS TEAM
Mercury adds leading elections lawyer, James Hartmann, to its growing Illinois shop

CHICAGO – Mercury, a leading global bipartisan public strategy firm, announced it has hired James Hartmann to work at its Illinois offices.

Hartmann is a Chicago-based attorney who has served as Chief Counsel to the Illinois Speaker of the House, as well as House Parliamentarian and House Democratic Ethics Officer. With his hire, Mercury has added another top-notch strategist who has relationships with influential policymakers in Illinois.

“James Hartmann adds yet another skill set to Mercury’s comprehensive public strategy team in Chicago and Springfield,” said Mercury Co-Chair and Partner Cheri Bustos, who runs the firm’s Illinois operation. “We have deep relationships inside and outside of federal, state and city government. James adds to that with his legal, electoral, and regulatory knowhow.”

Hartmann shared, “I’m excited to join the growing and dynamic team at Mercury. I look forward to using my legislative and legal expertise to advocate for our clients and drive impactful change.”

Prior to joining Mercury, Hartmann played a crucial role in some of the most consequential legislation in Illinois history. Notable examples of his work include acting as a lead House negotiator and drafter of the SAFE-T Act and Pre-Trial Fairness Act, as well as several pieces of legislation that promoted gun safety and gun control like the Protect Illinois Communities Act, which banned assault weapons, and the Illinois’ firearm red flag law. Additionally, he negotiated and drafted legislation that legalized sports betting in Illinois and legislation that authorized a casino in Chicago.

He was also the primary negotiator and drafter of multiple election law bills, including initiatives that expanded vote by mail, allowed for voting centers, protected disabled voter access, and established an elected Chicago School Board. In addition to his legislative work, Hartmann has represented hundreds of candidates in all aspects of the election process, from campaign compliance, to petition challenges and election recounts. In 2023, he was named to Chicago Lawyer Magazine’s 40 under 40.

About Mercury 

Mercury is a high-stakes, bipartisan public strategy firm. With 20 offices and 130 team members, the firm provides a comprehensive suite of services that includes federal government relations, international affairs, digital influence, public opinion research, media strategy and a bipartisan grassroots mobilization network in all 50 states. In addition to its two offices in Illinois, Mercury has U.S. offices in Washington, D.C., New York, California, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Florida, Texas, and South Carolina. Mercury is a part of the Omnicom Public Relations Group.

About Omnicom PR Group (OPRG)   

Omnicom PR Group (OPRG) is the largest global network of communications and consulting agencies in the world. It is home to three of the top global PR agencies FleishmanHillard, Ketchum, Porter Novelli and more than a dozen specialist agencies in corporate and public affairs, political consulting and advertising, language strategy, global health strategy and organizational transformation. OPRG is part of Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE: OMC). www.TeamOPRG.com.

Mercury Taps Derek Jansen as California Managing Director

July 8, 2024 / No Comments

Communications Strategist and Political Consultant Derek Jansen Joins Mercury Public Affairs to Lead Sacramento Expansion

SACRAMENTO, CA (July 8, 2024) — Mercury Public Affairs today announced that Derek Jansen has joined the global, bipartisan public strategy firm to lead their expansion into the Sacramento political, government relations, and communications market. Derek is a political and communications strategist with extensive experience working for political, government, and nonprofit clients facing electoral and advocacy challenges throughout California. He joins the California team led by Co-Chairs Herb Wesson, former Speaker of the Assembly and President of the City Council, and Partner Veronica Perez, as a Managing Director.

“As we continue to grow and expand Mercury’s California business, we need a leader in the Sacramento area with experience and skill and Derek is the right addition to our team,” said Herb Wesson, Co-Chair of Mercury California. “Advocacy, campaign work, and communications strategy are key functions of what we do and finding a person with the right combination of those skills is not easy.  With Derek, we’ve succeeded in finding all three and are looking forward to his bright future with Mercury.”

“Because of the size of the California economy and its impact on policy discussions nationally and globally we have always thought that as a leading high-stakes public strategy firm, we needed to bring our expertise back to Sacramento,” said Kieran Mahoney, CEO of Mercury Public Affairs. “Having Derek join Veronica and Speaker Wesson to build our presence here will provide California industry and organizations with access to our exceptional national network of proven talent in media, government, business, politics, and tech.”

Prior to joining Mercury, Derek worked for a leading California issue advocacy and political communications firm for nearly a decade on a wide range of issues including education policy, climate action, public health, tobacco control, criminal justice, and affordable housing. Additionally, Derek served in a senior political role for Tom Steyer’s NextGen Climate, cut his teeth in crisis communications at Singer Associates Public Relations, helped lead the Ed Lee for Mayor of San Francisco campaign (2011), and taught elementary school for two years in New York City as a Teach For America corps member.

Derek has served as an advisor and media consultant on political campaigns at the local, regional, and statewide levels, and will continue to serve as lead strategist, media consultant, and spokesperson for Ahsha Safaí for Mayor of San Francisco.

Derek lives in Sacramento with his wife, Victoria Hassid, and their daughter, Olivia.

 

About Mercury

Mercury is a high-stakes, bipartisan public strategy firm. The firm provides a comprehensive suite of services that includes federal government relations, international affairs, digital influence, public opinion research, media strategy, and a bipartisan grassroots mobilization network in all 50 states. Our firm is not just led by top talent — we distinguish ourselves by having senior talent deeply engaged in each project from start to finish, a promise we keep to clients. In addition to New York, the firm has U.S. offices in Washington, D.C., California, New Jersey, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Florida, and Texas. Mercury is a part of the Omnicom Public Relations Group.

 

About Omnicom PR Group (OPRG)

Omnicom PR Group (OPRG) is the largest global network of communications and consulting agencies in the world. It is home to three of the top global PR agencies Fleishman Hillard, Ketchum, and Porter Novelli, and more than a dozen specialist agencies in corporate and public affairs, political consulting and advertising, language strategy, global health strategy, and organizational transformation. OPRG is part of Omnicom (NYSE: OMC).