Leadership

Hon. Chair William J. Palatucci, Esq.

Mr. Palatucci currently serves as the Republican National Committeeman from New Jersey. Mr. Palatucci’s nearly four decades of political activism in support of the Republican Party and GOP candidates commenced with the New Jersey 1984 Reagan-Bush effort and then in 1985 he served as the executive director for Gov. Tom Kean's historic reelection landslide victory. Following that success, Bill led President George H. W. Bush in 1988 and 1992 New Jersey presidential efforts, and served as a senior advisor to Governor George W,. Bush in 2000. In 2009, Palatucci, a former law partner of then candidate Chris Christie, advised the candidate in his upset win over incumbent governor Jon Corzine, and served as chairman of Governor Christie's 2013 reelection effort. In 2016, Mr. Palatucci served as General Counsel to the Presidential Transition Committee of candidate Donald Trump. Mr. Palatucci is a partner in the law firm of McCarter & English, LLP, and practices in the firm's Business Litigation and Government Affairs group. A lifelong New Jerseyan, Mr. Palatucci is a graduate of Rutgers University and holds a Juris Doctorate from Seton Hall University School of Law.

Hon. Chair Jeffrey Chiesa, Esq.

Jeff Chiesa is a partner and executive committee member of the law firm Chiesa Shahinian & Giantomasi PC. Over the course of his professional career, Mr. Chiesa has also accepted several public service appointments including serving as the Governor’s Chief Counsel, as the state’s 59th Attorney General and, in 2013, he was chosen to serve as United State Senator following the death of Senator Frank Lautenberg. Prior to his work in state government, and his public office appointments, Mr. Chiesa served in the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the District of New Jersey. Before serving at the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Mr. Chiesa was in private practice primarily focused on the litigation of health, hospital and physician related matters.

Hon. Chair Susan Brooks

A native of Indiana, Mrs. Brooks is a graduate of Miami University (Ohio) and holds a Juris Doctorate from Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law. In 2001, Susan was appointed by President George W. Bush as U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana. She served for six years acting as the chief federal law enforcement officer for most of the state. Mrs. Brooks’ commitment to public service brought her to Washington in 2013, where she represented the Fifth District of Indiana in the US House of Representatives for four terms. During her career she received distinguished appoints to the House Ethics Committee and the Select Committee on Terrorist Acts in Benghazi. Throughout her professional career, Mrs. Brooks has advised companies, non-profits, educational institutions, and hospitals on operations and workforce planning and development during organizational transformations.