About

Mike Gibson

Partner & President

 
 

With more than 30 years of experience in grassroots lobbying, Mike Gibson created Advocacy Group, Inc (AGI) in 2004. As President, he serves in the executive leadership role, overseeing overall company operations. With his experience in grassroots lobbying and a combination of long-term strategic perspective and hands-on project management, Gibson has been able to plan, implement, and analyze grassroots campaigns of all types—educational and marketing, regulatory and legislative, local and national, high-volume, and highly selective—incorporating a range of grassroots tactics.

Prior to establishing AGI, Gibson was Executive Vice President of Operations at Direct Impact, where for a decade he spearheaded the successful application of the company’s capabilities in direct education, public relations, advertising, grassroots media and marketing, and other promotional campaigns. He directly oversaw and implemented Direct Impact’s most effective integrated grassroots programs and helped develop a bipartisan field network and high-touch direct grassroots phone center. Through these efforts, Gibson was able to build the unique contact patterns still utilized in grassroots campaigns today. He led hundreds of campaigns in conjunction with Direct Impact, DDC Public Affairs, Burson Marstellar, Fleishman Hillard, Edelman, and APCO on a range of issues and in all 50 states. Gibson was also a founding Partner of OnPoint Advocacy, which has since merged with DDC Public Affairs.

Prior to his tenure at Direct Impact, Gibson assisted in the creation of and managed grassroots efforts at the National Rifle Association. He has also worked with numerous candidates, including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, as well as many corporations and trade associations. Gibson was also employed at the Republican National Committee during the 1992 Presidential campaign cycle and stays involved in local politics as a board member on the Talbot County Republican Council in Easton, Maryland. Gibson graduated from the University of Louisville with a B.A. in Economics. 

Todd Benjamin

Partner and Chief Operating Officer

 

Todd Benjamin has more than two decades of grassroots experience along with hundreds of advocacy campaigns under his belt. Currently, he serves as AGI’s Chief Operating Officer.

Prior to joining AGI, Benjamin served as Senior Vice President at Forbes Tate Partners, where he formalized the company’s grassroots approach and spearheaded all grassroots efforts for the firm, from leading internal staff and managing external partners and vendors to implementing and executing on high-level campaigns across the issue spectrum. Before joining Forbes Tate Partners, Benjamin served as NextWave Advocacy’s Managing Partner, where he spearheaded strategy and day-to-day program implementation at the company.

Previously, Benjamin was also a Partner at DDC Public Affairs, where he also managed their field operations. In this role, Benjamin directed initiatives in every state in the nation across a diverse portfolio of issue areas, such as defense, transportation, health care, immigration reform, social security reform, cap and trade, international trade, and tax policy.

Benjamin’s expertise in field operations was fostered at Direct Impact, where he headed the company’s grassroots phone outreach center. His key influential and constituent mobilizations touched on myriad policy issues, including health care, defense, siting, international trade, telecommunications reform, and legal reform. 

Early career highlights include the Forbes 2000 campaign, where Benjamin served as Regional Field Director and candidate aide, as well as Field Initiative Coordination for former Representative Rodney Frelinghuysen (R-NJ-11). Benjamin holds a B.A. in Political Science from Drew University.

Sara Raak

Director of Field Operations

 

Sara Raak serves as Director of Field Operations for Advocacy Group Inc. Working in the D.C.  area for 17 years as a political professional, Raak has extensive experience managing and directing campaigns for corporations, non-profits, and associations related to public policy, public relations, and corporate responsibility and reputation.

Prior to joining Advocacy Group Inc, Raak served as Campaign Director at DDC Public Affairs, a full-service public affairs firm, developing and managing overall campaign strategies and activities, including nationwide grassroots and local media efforts for major trade associations and issue-based coalitions and foundations.

In addition, Raak worked for DCI Group, where she directed state-based campaigns for large telecommunications companies. She also served as the on-the-ground lead on the Forbes 2000 campaign in several counties in Iowa, and continued her love of all things campaign-related, working on multiple state-based campaigns in Iowa and a congressional campaign in New Hampshire.

Raak’s campaign days led her to positions at Progress for America, where she developed coalitions and campaigns to protect U.S. troops and assisted in the management of campaigns around the confirmations of Justices Alito and Roberts. Raak also worked at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce running the Vote for Business program during the 2008 election year.

Raak is a graduate of Hillsdale College and is actively involved with several charitable foundations. She is the co-founder of The Bennett Raak Foundation, serves on the Medstar Georgetown University Hospital NICU Parents Advisory Board, and is the Founder of the school-based Food for Thought program, a food pantry offering meals to elementary children and their families. She also served as a March of Dimes 2012 and 2013 Ambassador Family.