Panelist
Ana Cruz currently manages Ballard Partners’ Tampa Bay practice. She brings over 20 years of experience in lobbying, strategic communications, strategic partnerships, media relations, grassroots coalition building and political consulting. During her career, Ana has represented a wide array of clients throughout Central Florida in both the private and the public sectors and has successfully advocated for several high profile national and Florida-based clients.
Prior to entering into the lobbying sector, Ana worked in the Florida House and U.S. Senate, served as the Executive Director of the Florida Democratic Party, served as Hillary Clinton’s 2008 and 2016 Florida campaign spokesperson and advisor, and has successfully run numerous judicial, local and state legislative races.
Ana has extensive local and state legislative knowledge–having worked in the Florida House of Representatives and the United States Senate for Senator Bill Nelson–and maintains strong relationships on both sides of the aisle. For the past decade, she has focused on building a strong Central Florida local practice representing clients in the development, civil engineering and infrastructure, food and beverage and technology industries. Ana remains active in local, state and federal politics and currently serves as a political correspondent for Bay News 9. She also serves as a political advisor and spokesperson for many of Ballard’s corporate clients.
Ana was again recently named Florida’s Top 100 Most Influential by Florida Politics Magazine, she serves on the Hillsborough Community College Foundation Board, The Greater Chamber of Commerce Board, and the Athena Society.