Winning Connections mobilizes constituents and voters to impact legislation and win elections.

Winning Connections is a team of former legislative leaders, campaign strategists, staffers, journalists, and data specialists who understand politics and how to explain what’s at stake. We’ve mobilized grassroots support for clients ranging from the American Cancer Society and Climate Action Campaign to Airbnb and the Vermont Optometric Association.

As the nation’s leading grassroots advocacy firm, three things set Winning Connections apart from the competition – experience, research, and innovation.

-Experience: Since our founding in 1996, we’ve connected millions of constituents with their lawmakers to support or opposition legislation.

-Research: We work with political and behavioral scientists and outside experts to conduct internal analysis and independent studies to ensure our solutions are successful.

-Innovation: We constantly evaluate how we can get results for our clients in the most efficient way. Our best-in-class data team developed proprietary software that makes us better than anyone else in the business. We do in minutes what others take hours to achieve.

We’ve helped secure significant victories instate capitals across the country, winning more awards than any other firm in our industry. Notable policy wins include passing medical debt protections in Louisiana, defeating a solar ban in Maryland, and expanding Optometrists' scope of practice in Vermont.

FIRM SPECIALTY: Grassroots Advocacy

Winning Connections quickly connects constituents with lawmakers in key districts using targeted patch-through calls. As former lawmakers and staff in both Congress and state legislatures, we know that effective constituent calls move the needle and change the conversation.

Patch-through calls are the most efficient way to mobilize large numbers of people and connect them directly with decision makers. We will work with your team to determine targeted legislators and which messages will be most powerful. We will adapt scripts as the program continues and as the situation on the ground develops. We can generate patch-through calls at any volume, ranging from ten to tens of thousands of patch-through calls per day.

Our call centers are staffed with professionals who specialize in political calls and practice scripts so they sound “neighborly” and local. As an additional layer of quality assurance, our DC-based staff monitors call sessions to ensure scripts are effective and programs are operating smoothly. Anecdotes from these sessions—examples of what constituents are saying to lawmakers—are included in daily reports to clients, along with quantitative data showing that patch-through goals are being met.

We make sure lawmakers hear your message, directly from supportive constituents—and at-scale. Whatever your issue, we will amplify your message, adding an effective tool to your lobbying toolkit.

TAG CONTACTS

JOHN JAMESON founded Winning Connections in 1996 and built it into the nation's premier direct voter contact firm for interest groups, associations, and Democratic candidates.

Before he started Winning Connections, John spent years cementing his telecommunications, politics, and government expertise. These experiences helped him pioneer innovative methods to persuade and mobilize voters and constituents. One result is that Winning Connections has garnered more awards than any competitive firm. Another: his is the only political consulting firm ever profiled in the Harvard Business School Alumni (HBS) Magazine.

John's writing has been featured in the New Republic, The Washington Monthly, The Hill, and National Interest. John is a Trustee for HALO Trust. The world’s largest NGO dedicated to clearing landmines. He is also on the HBS Alumni Board. He has held leadership roles at EcoPeace, International Bridges to Justice, and Christ Episcopal Church.

John, an Eagle Scout, is a proud native of Eupora, Mississippi. He lives in Washington, D.C., where he is active at Christ Episcopal Church. He earned a B.A. from Millsaps College, a J.D. from Duke Law School, and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School.

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A former Member of Congress, MARK SCHAUER joined Winning Connections as Vice President in 2018, bringing to the firm his campaign and legislative expertise.

Before joining Winning Connections, Mark was the 2014 Democratic gubernatorial nominee in Michigan, U.S. Representative of Michigan's 7th Congressional District, state Senate Democratic Leader, state Representative, and Battle Creek city commissioner. Mark repeatedly won elections in GOP-leaning districts, earning a reputation as a dogged candidate running sophisticated and effective campaigns – experience that helps deliver results for Winning Connections' clients.

Mark earned a B.A. from Albion College, an M.P.A. from Western Michigan University, and an M.A. in Political Science from Michigan State University. He serves on the boards of directors of Planned Parenthood of Michigan, Committee to Protect Health Care, and STARBASE Michigan.

Mark and his wife, Christine, and dog Rocky reside in Portage, Michigan, near Kalamazoo.