Women Lobbyists GOVERNMENT TO CORPORATE

By Ariel Shaw, MBA & Brandeis Parkman, Esq.

The world of Lobbyists looks quite different today than even a decade ago. We catch up with a few women who are making their mark in a space that has been traditionally held overwhelmingly by white males Meet the women who are effecting policy behind the scenes for government, nonprofits and corporate clients First, let’s learn more about this field

What is a lobbyist? A lobbyist is a hired or volunteer advocate who influences an elected body to push a specific policy or political cause Why are companies, nonprofits, government entities and organizations hiring lobbyists? Lobbyists are hired because of their knowledge of the legislative process, ability to offer keen analysis of policy, and for their relationships with decisionmakers. What makes your group of women lobbyists so unique? The women are comprised of a cross-representation of in-house government relations executives and contract lobbyists with clients who makeup non-profit, government and Fortune 500 companies throughout the state. What makes them unique is their ability to overcome odds and excel in a profession where there is very little representation

What key legislation or policies have any of the ladies been able to help push through? Addressed maternal mortality by advocating for the expansion of Medicaid from 30 days to twelve months for new mothers; Helped create a right to action for state and county employees who experience sexual harassment to protect dignity at work; Advocated for regulatory safeguards for economic development authority boards; Expansion of the DNA Database; Protection/Expansion of the HOPE ScholarshipGrant; State forgivable school loan for dental professional who locate in rural communities; Funding for infrastructure and programs at public university; Defended against the Atlanta Airport Takeover.

Is this field uniquely white and male? What challenges do women and black women face in this field? How do they overcome them?

Traditionally policy and political work has skewed white and male. However, this year, Georgia saw the largest and most diverse class of new legislators and this is reflected not only in the chambers, but also in the hallways where we do most of our work. It’s all tied to growth and population of Georgia. We are glad to be pat of that growth and change in our state

What challenges do women and black women face in this field? How do they overcome them? The challenges black women face in this field are similar to the challenges faced in other fields Until there are greater systemic changes and equity across our culture this is something that every woman will experience. As black women lobbyists we come into this work to make a difference by building relationships, educating clients on the importance of engagement with elected officials, and by providing knowledgeable, trust-worthy information to stakeholders

Now meet a few of the women making changes quietly behind the scenes.

Yosha Dotson

Yosha Dotson has been involved in the creation of effective partnerships and interactions across the state at the local, department, regional and federal level She has worked with coalitions, legislators, the governor’s office, and the lieutenant governor’s office to secure funding, create Commissions, and pass legislation to improve the lives of Georgians across the state Yosha’s areas of focus include Health, Insurance, Public Health /Safety, Economy, and Workforce policies.

Yosha’s slate of accomplishments include: Work with legislative leadership to build and diversify the Behavioral Health Reform and Innovation Commission, ensuring the largest overhaul of the Behavioral Health system in Georgia in more than 20 years; increased state dollars for investment trends instead of the decreases which had plagued previous years; advocacy for the expansion of Medicaid coverage from 30 days to twelve months to address maternal health service gaps; secured paid parental leave for state employees.

Yosha’s passion is to see the education and empowerment of people that will spark engagement and result in the implementation of better policy at the state and local level.

A North Carolina native, Yosha received her undergraduate degree in Communications from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill and her Master of Social Work from the University of Georgia. She and her husband reside in Duluth, Georgia

With over ten years of experience, Deanna Harris has serviced several industries: transportation, small business, municipalities, education, technology, and law enforcement Her mission is to provide unique industry perspectives based on her political experience, knowledge, and relationships to connect and highlight the relationship between industry and policy. She was born in Cleveland, Ohio, and received her bachelor degree in Advertising and Marketing at Florida State University She then earned a Master in Journalism and Public Communications from Cleveland State University.

DeAnna Harris is a dedicated community advocate recognized for her unwavering commitment to fostering positive change and social impact.

DeAnna's journey in community advocacy began in Tallahassee, Florida, where she witnessed firsthand the challenges marginalized populations face This experience fueled her determination to make a difference and led her to engage actively in various community initiatives.

DeAnna Harris's leadership qualities have not gone unnoticed She has been recognized for her outstanding contributions to community advocacy, receiving accolades from local organizations and community leaders. Her ability to mobilize resources, build strategic partnerships, and drive impactful initiatives has set her apart as a trailblazer in her field She is a member of Keep Cobb Beautiful, the Conservative Policy Leadership Institute Alumni Board, and the Cobb County Chamber of Commerce DeAnna has served on several nonprofit boards, including Live Safe Resource Center, Habitat for Humanity Northwest, and Family Life Restoration Center. She has also participated in several leadership programs, including Cobb Chamber's Honorary Commanders and Next Generation Mentoring

DeAnna enjoys watching the Atlanta Falcons, playing tennis, and spending time with her family DeAnna is a long-time Cobb County, Georgia resident She is a member of Zion Baptist Church in Marietta, Ga.

Labriah Lee Holt

Labriah Lee Holt is a Vice President in BGR Group’s State and Local Advocacy practice. Labriah brings to BGR her extensive state and local government advocacy experience across corporate, association, legal, and government settings

Through her career in advocacy and law, she has strong relationships with Democratic policymakers across the U S Most recently, she served as State Government Affairs Director for Microsoft, where she led outreach across the southeast to regional state and local officeholders on artificial intelligence, cloud adoption, datacenter expansion, cyber security, privacy, education, and broadband priorities

Through her expertise in partner engagement, Labriah also helped shape the company’s bipartisan relationships with United States Conference of Mayors (USCOM), Attorneys General Associations, and served on the Business Council of the African American Mayors Association (AAMA) to help strengthen public and private relationships to advance communities.

She also served as the Northeast Regional Director of Outreach for the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) where she was eventually named the National Director. In these roles, Labriah worked with federal, state, and local leaders throughout the country to coalition build and advance policy Labriah was recognized by the New York State Assembly and received a Congressional Proclamation from Congressman Charles Rangel for her work and service within the NYC community

Labriah began her career at Alston & Bird LLP where she served as a Senior Associate focused on intellectual property. In this role, she counseled Fortune 100 companies and nonprofit organizations on patent, trademark, copyright, social media, and brand protection matters

Labriah attended Vanderbilt University and the Howard University School of Law, where she was a merit scholar and member of the Howard Law Journal She currently serves on the board of CareerRise to help advance economic mobility through partnerships and systems that meet employer needs for talent and connect metro Atlanta residents to sustainable wage careers in quality jobs

She previously served on the board for the Black Women’s Health Imperative and as Vice Chair for the Harvard Debate Council Diversity Project She is also a former member of the Anti-Defamation League’s Charles F Wittenstein Advisory Committee, the Atlanta Citizen Review Board, and Gen 44 Atlanta Finance Committee for the DNC

A strong community advocate, Labriah is based in Atlanta, Georgia where she resides with her husband Kevin Holt and twins Avery Rose and Austin.

Jasmine King

Jasmine King was born and raised in Macon, Georgia She attended the University of Georgia and graduated Cum Laude with degrees in mass media arts and communication studies While at UGA, Jasmine was a cheerleader and served as a captain her senior year. After graduation she worked for Governor Nathan Deal’s administration, where she served as the Special Assistant to the First Lady as well as the Executive Assistant to the Chief of Staff and Executive Counsel. At the conclusion of Deal’s term, Jasmine went on to pursue a career in government affairs. She was the Director of State & Federal Government Affairs at Georgia Southern University before becoming the Senior Director of State & Federal Affairs for the Georgia Chamber of Commerce. Currently, Jasmine resides in Atlanta and serves as the Legislative Affairs Representative on the Georgia Power Legislative Affairs team

Meciala S. King

Meciala S King works as Legislative Affairs and Political Action Committee Associate for the Georgia Trial Lawyers Association She is responsible for cultivating relationships with state legislative policy makers across Metro Atlanta and the State of Georgia. Prior to joining the Georgia Trial Lawyers Association, Meciala was a practicing real estate attorney. An Atlanta native, she attended Georgia State University where she received her Bachelor of Arts Degree in Political Science with a minor in African American Studies In 2019, Meciala graduated from John Marshall Law School located in Atlanta, Georgia Meciala is a member of the Georgia State Bar and currently sits on the Board of Trustees for the Georgia Bar Foundation, the charitable arm of the Supreme Court of Georgia She is also an active member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated

Fatimot Ladipo is Associate Vice President Vice President of Government and Community Relations for Spelman College, the #1 HBCU in the country In this role, she serves as the primary liaison for Spelman College with elected officials and staff, government agencies, and with the local community. Prior to joining Spelman, Fatimot worked for The Coca-Cola Company as Director of Public Affairs, Communications, and Sustainability for the South Zone, a 19-state/territory region. Some of her duties included leading a team responsible for public affairs, government relations, stakeholder partnerships, strategic communications, sustainability and community-related programming Fatimot has worked in both the public and private sectors serving as Director of the Mayor’s Office of Intergovernmental Affairs (IGA) in the City of Atlanta, where she managed the IGA team and was the lead lobbyist on state and federal legislative issues and prior to her work with the city she served as Regional Director for External Affairs for AT&T, advancing their legislative and regulatory agenda at the local and state level while also working with the AT&T Foundation, administering local grants.

Fatimot has worked at other higher education institutions in government relations roles, including the Georgia Institute of Technology and Kennesaw State University, where she was responsible for lobbying federal, state, and local officials and developing action plans that focused on getting public and private support for student and faculty research and programming. Fatimot graduated from the University of Virginia with a Bachelor of Arts in African American Studies and earned a Master of Science in Public Policy from the Georgia Institute of Technology.

She is a proud native of Atlanta.

Brandeis Malbrue Parkman

Brandeis Malbrue Parkman has made a career at the intersection of business, government and community. In 2022, Brandeis launched The Malbrue Group, a boutique lobbying and public affairs firm to advocate for startups and other organizations at the federal, state & local levels of government She spent nearly 25 years building partnerships between corporate America, legislatures, and southern cities As a contract lobbyist, Brandeis has represented major corporations from Google to Racetrac, tech startups such as PrizePicks, and municipal governments to include Clayton County, Georgia. Her political savvy and deeply rooted bipartisan relationships are well-respected under the Gold Dome.

Her early work was influenced by leaders in the local Atlanta civil rights movement. Brandeis was a community organizer and led Black Youth Vote in partnership with the Georgia Coalition for the People’s Agenda. She has worked on state and local elections, trained aspiring officeholders and advised elected officials, serving as an aide to the Georgia Senate Minority Caucus leader and later as chief of staff in the Georgia State House

Recognized for her leadership commitment to her community, Brandeis served on the 2021 transition team for Henry County Commission Chairwoman Carlotta Harrell. She also serves on the board of the Georgia WIN List where she was also a member of the 2018 Georgia Win List leadership class.

Brandeis is a proud graduate of Spelman College and earned her Juris Doctor degree from Georgia State University College of Law She resides in Henry County, GA with her husband Legery and sons Mason “Dash” and Koda

Ryland Needom McClendon’s career has included a broad and deep portfolio of experiences as a policy maker, transit professional, senior staffer and contract lobbyist for over five decades in local government and public transit. Currently, McClendon is a contract lobbyist collaborating with the Georgia Public Affairs (GPA) team. She used her experience working with local and state governments to join the GPA team The team represents Fulton County Board of Commissioners as their State Lobbyists. The GPA team was successful in Fulton County receiving funding during the 2023 Legislative Session for a much-needed mental health crisis center in the County. McClendon also worked on the team when GPA represented the City of East Point in 2021 and worked to pass municipal option sales tax legislation for water and sewer repairs for the City of East Point. The team also represented Clayton County in 2019 McClendon’s previous transit career included five years on the MARTA Board of Directors, 1990–1995 representing the City of Atlanta Elected Chairperson of the MARTA Board,1991 –1992, McClendon set strategic policy direction, served on national and regional transportation governing boards, supported transit funding re-authorization, and served as a liaison to local governments and other MARTA stakeholders. McClendon was the first African

American and woman to lead the MARTA Board In 2005, McClendon returned to MARTA as the Assistance General Manager (AGM) of MARTA’s Department of Communications & External Affairs and worked closely with four General Manager/CEOs. As AGM, she was instrumental in building strong external relationships with the community and government officials, coordinating MARTA’s national and local legislative efforts, advancing media relations, and enhancing the image and reputation of MARTA Under her leadership, her team successfully passed state legislation leading to billions in transit funding in Atlanta and Clayton County McClendon retired from MARTA in 2018 An Atlanta native, McClendon earned her B.S. degree in Urban Life and her Master’s degree in Public Administration from Georgia State University