PHILADELPHIA – January 7, 2019 – Cozen O’Connor Public Strategies today welcomed back Joe Hill, one of Pennsylvania’s leading government relations and political strategists who left the firm a little over a year ago to serve as political director and deputy campaign manager to Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf’s highly successful reelection bid. Having helped Governor Wolf capture a resounding 58 percent of Pennsylvania’s popular vote, Hill now returns to Cozen O’Connor Public Strategies’ Philadelphia office as a government relations principal to lead the expansion of the team’s capabilities in Philadelphia and Southeastern Pennsylvania.

Hill brings to the firm a wealth of experience across public service, public affairs, political campaigns, and education policy. In his new role, he will advise corporate and nonprofit clients on strategic engagement with the public sector. In addition, Hill will enhance the firm’s statewide outreach efforts, including executive and legislative branch advocacy and policy monitoring.

“We are excited to have Joe back with the firm and our Public Strategies team in Philadelphia,” says Michael J. Heller, Cozen O’Connor’s executive chairman and chief executive officer. “Joe’s Pennsylvania roots run deep. He was born and raised in Philadelphia, he taught school here and he has since added more than a decade of civic and political experience. Yes, he’s well-connected in the city, but just as important, he’s equally familiar with Pennsylvania’s diverse political and policy landscape and has worked across both sides of the aisle to achieve results.”

Before originally joining Cozen O’Connor Public Strategies, Hill was the deputy political director for the Hillary for America campaign in Pennsylvania, where he managed and leveraged the campaign's relationships with elected officials, business leaders, and labor organizations. Prior to that role, he served as the director of public participation for the 2016 Democratic National Convention Committee (DNCC), leading the public engagement program with various state and local stakeholders throughout the region.

“Joe will lead the expansion of our Public Strategies practice in Philadelphia,” says Mark L. Alderman, chairman of Cozen O’Connor Public Strategies. “With his contributions to Governor Wolf’s campaign, the Hillary for America campaign, and his work with the DNCC, Joe has cultivated incredibly strong ties with a wide range of elected officials, civic groups and business organizations throughout the commonwealth. I’m thrilled that he’s returning to Public Strategies and I’m looking forward to working with him once again.”

“I enjoyed my time at Cozen O’Connor and it’s exciting to be back,” Hill said. “Truly effective state and local lobbying requires day-to-day, on-the-ground, face-to-face contact—with a deep bench to back you up. With my political and business contacts and a solid team behind me, I’m looking forward to representing our clients with interests in Pennsylvania on a range of important and current issues.”

Hill’s pre-Cozen O’Connor background also includes serving in the office of U.S. Senator Robert P. Casey, Jr., advising on a range of national and local political issues affecting Southeastern Pennsylvania and liaising with constituent groups in the region. He was also an education policy adviser to the senator on issues before the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee. During this time, Hill worked on higher education policy, as well as the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) that became law in December of 2015.

Prior to serving on Capitol Hill, he was a Teach for America corps member in Wilmington, Del., leading his students to significant growth on statewide assessments. Before becoming an educator, Hill served as chairman of the Philadelphia Youth Commission and testified before the House Budget Committee on higher education policy. He holds a B.A. from Georgetown University.

Hill’s return to Cozen O’Connor caps a year of exhilarating and rapid growth for the Public Strategies Group.

In May, Evan Bayh — the former two-term U.S. senator and governor of Indiana — joined its Washington D.C. office as a senior adviser to Public Strategies and as of counsel to Cozen O’Connor. Also in May, Mary Cooley joined Public Strategies’ growing New York City government relations team, working to advance client policy agendas before key agencies and decision makers in New York City.

In July, Julia Ciarlo Hammond and Ryan F. O’Toole — who have secured the passage of numerous public policy measures before Virginia’s General Assembly— joined Public Strategies Richmond, Va., office; Patrick G. Martin — who has lobbied successfully before Congress, the White House, federal agencies and a range of state and local governments — was brought in to lead Public Strategies’ Midwest government relations and public affairs expansion; and James L. Ansorge joined Cozen O’Connor’s midtown New York office as a government relations adviser within Public Strategies and as counsel within the law firm.

In August, Alexandra Campau, who served as a special assistant to the president on the White House Domestic Policy Council, returned to Public Strategies in Washington, D.C. as principal and director of health policy. In October Thomas A. Lisk, who has represented business interests and trade associations before the Virginia General Assembly, joined as a Public Strategies managing director in Richmond, Va.

About Cozen O’Connor Public Strategies

Cozen O’Connor Public Strategies, an affiliate of Cozen O’Connor, is a bipartisan government relations practice representing clients before the federal government and in cities and states throughout the country. With offices in Washington D.C., Richmond, Albany, New York City, Philadelphia, Harrisburg, Chicago, and Santa Monica, the firm’s public strategies professionals offer a full complement of government affairs services, including legislative and executive branch advocacy, policy analysis, assistance with government procurement and funding programs, and crisis management. Its client base spans across major global industries, including health care, transportation, hospitality, education, construction, energy, real estate, entertainment, financial services, and insurance.

About Cozen O’Connor

Established in 1970, Cozen O’Connor has more than 825 attorneys who help clients manage risk and make better business decisions. The firm counsels clients on their most sophisticated legal matters in all areas of the law, including litigation, corporate, and regulatory law. Representing a broad array of leading global corporations and middle market companies, Cozen O’Connor services its clients’ needs through 31 offices across two continents.

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