Heather Podesta
Heather Miller Podesta | |
|---|---|
Podesta in 2013 | |
| Born | January 8, 1970 |
| Alma mater | University of Virginia School of Law (JD) University of California, Berkeley |
| Occupations |
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| Spouse | |
Heather Miller Podesta (born January 8, 1970)[1] is an American lawyer, lobbyist, and contemporary art collector based in Washington, D.C.[2] She is the founder and CEO of Invariant, a leading bipartisan government relations and strategic communications firm. She is also the former wife of Tony Podesta.
Career
Podesta received her J.D. degree from the University of Virginia Law School and graduated with honors from the University of California, Berkeley.
Podesta worked as a congressional aide to members of Congress, including U.S. Representatives Robert Matsui and Earl Pomeroy, and US Senator Bill Bradley.[3] She also served as assistant general counsel at the Air Transport Association and general counsel at the Airlines Clearing House.[4]
In 2007, Podesta founded Heather Podesta + Partners,[5] which, as of 2012, was the nation's largest woman-owned government relations firm.[6] The firm's lobbying clients include companies in energy, finance, healthcare, retail, real estate, education, transportation, and weapons.[7]
In 2010, the National Law Journal ranked Podesta as one of "Washington's Most Influential Women Lawyers".[8] In 2012, National Journal ranked Podesta as one of "Washington's Most Influential Women"[9] and GQ named her one of the "50 Most Powerful People in Washington".[10] The Hill has repeatedly named her one of its "Top Lobbyists".[11]
Podesta was once known for supporting and advising Democratic candidates across the country.[12] In the 2012 federal election cycle, Podesta and her colleagues bundled more than $300,000 on behalf of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, the Senate Majority PAC, and individual Democratic candidates.[13]
On March 29, 2017, Podesta renamed her firm from "Heather Podesta + Partners" to "Invariant". She began to hire Republicans.[14][15][16]
The firm has since lobbied for large insurance corporations such as Prudential and New York Life.[17]
Podesta sits on the National Advisory Council of the Institute of Governmental Studies. She is a member of the Board of Trustees of Ford's Theatre and serves on the Washington D.C. Police Foundation Board.[18]
Art collection
Podesta, a member of the Board of Trustees of the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, is an avid collector of contemporary art.[19] In 2009, Podesta donated Shepard Fairey's iconic Barack Obama "Hope" poster to the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C.[20]
She was named one of the "Philanthropic 50" by Washington Life in 2010.[21] She was named by ARTnews as one of the 200 top collectors in 2012 and 2013.[22][23]
Personal life
Heather Podesta is the daughter of Sanford Miller, a distinguished professor of mathematics at SUNY Brockport, and Leslie Jill Miller, an executive with Xerox.[24]
In 2012, Podesta was named by Washingtonian as a "Style Setter."[25]
She married Tony Podesta in 2003; they divorced in 2014.[26]
References
- ^ TAMMY HADDAD. "Heather Podesta's 40th birthday". politico.com. Archived from the original on 2022-12-05. Retrieved 2025-06-24.
- ^ "Married, With Art". Washington Post. September 23, 2004. Archived from the original on August 18, 2017. Retrieved August 29, 2017.
- ^ "The Making and Unmaking of Tony and Heather Podesta's Power Marriage - Washingtonian". 2014-08-11. Archived from the original on 2025-05-12. Retrieved 2025-04-19.
- ^ "Podesta, Heather". OpenSecrets. Archived from the original on 2013-12-13. Retrieved 2013-12-09.
- ^ "Heather Podesta + Partners - Washington, DC Government Relations & Public Affairs". heatherpodesta.com. Archived from the original on 2009-03-30. Retrieved 2009-08-25.
- ^ "Capital Dames: 10 Powerful Women in DC". Elle. March 19, 2012.
- ^ Podesta relative earned six-figure fees lobbying Clinton's State Dept. during his tenure there, October 27, 2016, archived from the original on November 18, 2024, retrieved November 10, 2024
- ^ "Washington's Most Influential Women Lawyers". National Law Journal. June 28, 2010.
- ^ "NJ's Most Influential Women". National Journal. July 12, 2012. Archived from the original on January 20, 2015.
- ^ "The 50 Most Powerful People in Washington*". GQ. February 2012. Archived from the original on 2013-10-05. Retrieved 2017-09-09.
- ^ "Top Lobbyists 2013". The Hill. October 30, 2013.
- ^ "Female Fundraisers Aid Super PACs". Newsweek. July 16, 2012. Archived from the original on December 12, 2013. Retrieved December 9, 2013.
- ^ "Heather Podesta & Partners". OpenSecrets.
- ^ Weiss, Amy (March 29, 2017). "Heather Podesta + Partners Changes Name to Invariant". Invariant Press Release / Politico.com. Archived from the original on March 27, 2023. Retrieved June 24, 2025.
- ^ Weaver, Dustin (2017-03-29). "Lobby firm Heather Podesta + Partners rebrands". TheHill. Archived from the original on 2017-06-07. Retrieved 2017-06-30.
- ^ Invariant. "Invariant". invariantgr.com. Archived from the original on 2017-07-29. Retrieved 2017-06-30.
- ^ "Prominent Democratic Fundraisers Realign to Lobby for Trump's Agenda". The Intercept. June 23, 2017. Archived from the original on June 29, 2017. Retrieved June 29, 2017.
- ^ "Washington DC Police Foundation". dcpolicefoundation.org. Archived from the original on 2013-12-13. Retrieved 2013-12-09.
- ^ "Museum of Contemporary Art elects 4 new members to board of trustees". Los Angeles Times. October 22, 2014. Archived from the original on September 7, 2021. Retrieved March 28, 2017.
- ^ "Fit for a T: Portrait Gallery Gets Obama 'Hope' Collage". The Washington Post. January 7, 2009.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ "The 2010 Philanthropic 50: Visual Arts". Washington Life. June 11, 2010. Archived from the original on December 14, 2013. Retrieved December 9, 2013.
- ^ "The 2012 ARTnews 200 Top Collectors". ARTnews. June 26, 2012. Archived from the original on February 3, 2019. Retrieved December 9, 2013.
- ^ "The 2013 ARTnews 200 Top Collectors". ARTnews. July 9, 2013. Archived from the original on January 10, 2014. Retrieved December 9, 2013.
- ^ "The D.C. power player with Rochester roots". Rochester Beacon. November 2, 2020. Archived from the original on February 12, 2021. Retrieved February 15, 2021.
- ^ "DC Style Setters 2012". Washingtonian. Archived from the original on 2013-06-17. Retrieved 2013-12-09.
- ^ "Heather and Tony Podesta reach divorce settlement". The Washington Post. June 9, 2014. Archived from the original on April 12, 2015. Retrieved August 29, 2017.