SACRAMENTO, CA — Martin R. Wilson has joined the California Chamber of Commerce as Vice President of Public Affairs.
In his new role, Wilson will oversee all of CalChamber’s public affairs activities, including the Public Affairs Council, a political advisory committee made up of CalChamber’s major members, its candidate recruitment and support program and its political action committees. CalChamber’s political action committees are: ChamberPAC, which supports pro-jobs candidates and legislators, and CalBusPAC, which qualifies, supports and/or opposes ballot initiatives. He will also serve as the CalChamber liaison to JobsPAC, an employer-based committee that supports pro-jobs candidates.
“Marty Wilson will play a key role in CalChamber’s focused efforts to identify and support pro-jobs candidates from both political parties who will work to improve California’s economy,” said CalChamber CEO Allan Zaremberg.
“2012 is one of the most important election years in decades, particularly for the California legislature. Their boundary lines have, for the first time, been drawn by a citizens commission rather than themselves and we will have an open primary, due to Proposition 14, where the top two candidates – regardless of party -- will run off in the general election,” continued Zaremberg. “In this new political environment, Marty’s experience and credibility will be extremely valuable to the business community as we work to identify and elect legislators who will be focused on job creation.”
Wilson has over 35 years of experience in California politics. Most recently, he was the Managing Partner of Wilson-Miller Communications, a firm he founded in 2004. Prior to opening Wilson-Miller, he was the managing director for Public Strategies Inc. in Sacramento for five years and held a similar position with Burson-Marsteller for six years. Over the course of his career, he has served as a senior member of four winning gubernatorial campaigns, played a senior role in several ballot measure campaigns, and has advised major California employers on public policy matters. Wilson’s political experience also includes senior –level staff positions in the Governor’s office and the U.S. Senate. Most recently, he managed the come-from-behind primary victory for the Carly Fiorina campaign.
Wilson has served as senior fellow for the University of California, Los Angeles School of Public Affairs, board member for the California State Fair and director of the Coro Foundation, a public affairs training organization. He graduated from San Diego State University in 1977 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in History.
The California Chamber of Commerce (CalChamber) is the largest broad-based business advocate to government in California. Membership represents one-quarter of the private sector jobs in California and includes firms of all sizes and companies from every industry within the state. Leveraging our front-line knowledge of laws and regulations, we provide products and services to help businesses comply with both federal and state law. CalChamber, a not-for-profit organization with roots dating to 1890, promotes international trade and investment in order to stimulate California's economy and create jobs. Please visit our website at www.calchamber.com.
#####