Lobbying is a form of advocacy, which lawfully attempts to directly influence legislators or government officials, such as regulatory agencies or judiciary. Lobbying, which usually involves direct, face-to-face contact in cooperation with support staff that may not meet directly face-to-face, is done by many types of people, associations and organized groups, including individuals on a personal level in their capacity as voters, constituents, or private citizens; it is also practiced by corporations in the private sector serving their own business interests; by non-profits and non-governmental organizations in the voluntary sector through advocacy groups to fulfil their mission such as requesting humanitarian aid or grantmaking; and by fellow legislators or government officials influencing each other through legislative affairs in the public sector.
The Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council (AIJAC), represents the interests of the Australian Jewish community to government, politicians, media and other community groups and organisations through research, commentary and analysis. The organisation is directed by Colin Rubenstein, who was previously a political science lecturer at Monash University. AIJAC has office locations in Melbourne and Sydney. AIJAC is formally associated with the American Jewish Committee.
Hill & Knowlton is an American global public relations consulting company, headquartered in New York City. The firm has over 80 additional offices in more than 40 countries. The company was founded in Cleveland, in 1927 by John W. Hill and is now owned by the WPP Group.
Lobbying in the United States is paid activity in which special interest groups hire well-connected professional advocates, often lawyers, to argue for specific legislation in decision-making bodies such as the United States Congress. It is often perceived negatively by journalists and the American public; critics consider it to be a form of bribery, influence peddling, and/or extortion. Lobbying is subject to complex rules which, if not followed, can lead to penalties including jail. Lobbying has been interpreted by court rulings as free speech protected by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Since the 1970s, the numbers of lobbyists and the size of lobbying budgets has grown and become the focus of criticism of American governance.
Joel Johnson is a managing director of the Glover Park Group, a strategic communications firm, and former Senior Advisor for Policy and Communications to President Bill Clinton from 1999 to 2001. Johnson has also worked on the staff of former senators Tom Daschle and Howard Metzenbaum. In 2001, he co-founded The Harbour Group, a public relations company, before leaving to join John Kerry's presidential campaign. Johnson became a managing director of the Glover Park Group in 2005.
Burson is a multinational public relations and communications firm, headquartered in New York City.
Direct lobbying in the United States are methods used by lobbyists to influence United States legislative bodies. Interest groups from many sectors spend billions of dollars on lobbying.
Bruce Hawker is an Australian political strategist, commentator and chairman of Campaigns & Communications Group, which he founded in January 2011.
Anthony Thomas Podesta is an American lobbyist best known for founding the Podesta Group. The brother of former White House Chief of staff John Podesta, he was formerly one of Washington's most powerful lobbyists and fundraisers.
The Glover Park Group was an American communications consulting firm headquartered in Washington, D.C. The company was founded in 2001 by former White House and Democratic campaign officials Carter Eskew, Michael Feldman, Joe Lockhart and Chip Smith. In January 2021, the firm merged with Finsbury and Hering Schuppener to form Finsbury Glover Hering, which itself later merged in December 2021 with New York City-based Sard Verbinnen & Co to form FGS Global.
Campaigns & Communications Group is an Australian election campaign and communications advisory company founded by Bruce Hawker in 2011. Hawker was formerly chairman and co-founder of the government relations and lobbying firm Hawker Britton, established with David Britton in 1997.
Justin Di Lollo is an Australian lobbyist. He established a Sydney office of the firm Hakluyt and Company.
Barton Deakin is an Australian and New Zealand government relations and lobbying firm. The firm is openly partisan and works primarily with Coalition governments and oppositions in Australia and the National Party in New Zealand. It employs staff with ties to the Liberal Party of Australia and National Party of Australia including their state affiliates, and the New Zealand National Party.
Heathgate Resources Pty Ltd is a uranium mining company owned by the US-based nuclear company, General Atomics. Heathgate owns and operates the Beverley and Beverley North uranium mines which are located in the Frome Basin about 550 kilometres (340 mi) north of Adelaide in South Australia. In 2000, Heathgate Resources established Australia’s first operating in-situ recovery (ISR) uranium mine. The company is based in Adelaide and is a sponsor of the South Australian Museum. In the South Australian Parliament, Heathgate Resources has been represented by lobbying firms Hawker Britton and Barton Deakin Government Relations.
BGR Group is a lobbying and communications firm based in Washington, D.C., with offices in London, Beijing and Austin, Texas. Founded in 1991 by former White House aides Ed Rogers and Haley Barbour, the firm was joined by Lanny Griffith to form Barbour Griffith & Rogers. In 2019, BGR was recognized by both The Hill and Bloomberg as a "Top Performing Lobbying Firm".
Lobbyit is a bipartisan lobbying firm headquartered in Washington, D.C. It was founded as a one-man shop in 2009 by company president Paul Kanitra. By 2014, Lobbyit had grown to seven employees and projected $1 million in annual revenue. The firm is known for its pricing structure, which is “unique” among DC lobbying firms: it offers its clients set monthly prices based on a tier system with retainers that are much lower than traditional lobbying firms and month-to-month contracts.
Lobbying in South Australia is a growing activity, by which organizations or individuals attempt to influence the Government of South Australia in its policy, regulation and law-making. Since 1 December 2009, lobbyists commercially operating on behalf of third party interests are required to join a register and must also comply with a Code of Conduct. The register is available to the public via the website of the Department of the Premier and Cabinet, and lists the names of registered entities, their employed lobbyists and their clients. As of April 2015, sixty-five different entities are listed on the register, with notable examples including Bespoke Approach and Barker Wentworth.
Andrew Blunt is the chief executive officer and executive chairman for Husch Blackwell Strategies. He is the son of former U.S. Senator Roy Blunt and the brother of former Missouri Governor Matt Blunt.
WPP AUNZ is a multinational communications, advertising, public relations, technology, and commerce holding company headquartered in Australia. It is a subsidiary of the UK conglomerate WPP plc.
Kosmos Samaras is a Greek-Australian lobbyist, pollster, and former Victorian Labor strategist. He helped run Labor's state election campaigns for 14 years before departing in 2019 to found RedBridge, a political consultancy firm, which has become influential in Victorian politics.
