Fiona Hutton & Associates is your connection to a winning team of public affairs professionals with proven track records of success in representing high-profile clients and effectively managing complex and challenging issues.

Fiona Hutton
President

One of the state’s best-known public affairs professionals, Fiona Hutton knows how to connect the right message to the right audience at the right time. She has more than two decades of experience working in the agency, corporate, political and governmental worlds.

Since launching her own public affairs firm in 2001, she has represented a broad spectrum of business, non-profit, government, trade association and political clients in controversial and complex campaigns and advocacy efforts, regulatory processes, legislative actions and crisis management situations. Ms. Hutton has developed an expertise in public policy issues, including specialties in health care, scientific and medical research, land use, water, the environment, energy and business.

She has gained a reputation for her mastery of media relations, her development of concise and effective messages for clients and her meticulously planned and implemented communications programs.

During her years of working in California’s highly competitive and constantly evolving political landscape, she also has established an impressive background in issue-based political campaigns and an extensive national, statewide and regional political network. In addition, she has become an accomplished and sought-after public spokesperson for clients in statewide, national and international media outlets.

Ms. Hutton has deployed these skills for clients around the state and the country, including the California Association of Health Plans, The Home Depot, The Nature Conservancy, Los Angeles Dodgers, Association of California Water Agencies, Woodside Natural Gas, and City National Bank.

With her expertise in health care, she’s been a top adviser to every successful stem cell research campaign in the country, from Proposition 71 in California in 2004 to Missouri’s Amendment 2 in 2006. Her strong background and connections in the environmental and conservation communities led to Ms. Hutton playing critical roles in every statewide conservation and water bond -- Propositions 12/13, 40, 50 and 84 -- on California’s ballot since 2000. Ms. Hutton also played a critical role as spokesperson and media relations strategist for Propositions 94, 95, 96 and 97 --- four Indian gaming measures that sparked one of the most controversial and expensive ballot measure campaigns in California history.

Ms. Hutton got her start in politics working for then-Governor Pete Wilson, playing an instrumental role in coordinating all aspects of his statewide and national political agenda, including his 1994 gubernatorial re-election and statewide ballot measure campaigns.

Ms. Hutton serves on the Board of Directors for the Valley Industry & Commerce Association, one of the largest business advocacy organizations in the Los Angeles region. She received her B.A. in Political Science from San Diego State University.

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Laura Mecoy
Strategic Communications Advisor

An award-winning former journalist with an insider’s understanding of the media, Laura Mecoy knows how to connect with the media, communicate in challenging situations, explain complex subjects and reach out to the community, clients and other stakeholders. She knows how reporters think, how they’re likely to cover a story and what questions they’re likely to ask.

For more than 20 years, she worked in Sacramento, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. for The Sacramento Bee and McClatchy Newspapers. Most recently, she was The Bee’s Los Angeles Bureau Chief, reporting on a wide range of topics across Southern California, including health care, transportation, development, energy and the environment.

Previously, she wrote extensively about the California Legislature, the governor and statewide politics as a member of The Bee’s Capitol Bureau in Sacramento. She also covered Congress, the Supreme Court and the Bush and Clinton administrations as a member of McClatchy Newspapers’ Washington Bureau.

Ms. Mecoy’s reputation as a leader on these stories and others led to her being sought as an expert commentator for the “Today” Show, CNN, Court TV, NPR and other broadcast outlets. The Pat Brown Institute of Public Affairs and the Center for Campaign Leadership also sought her expert commentary, while several publications, including Los Angeles Magazine, AARP Bulletin and Money Magazine, have contracted for her writing.

Her experience gives her a rare insight into the forces, organizations and people making the decisions in Sacramento, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. She has successfully transferred this experience to the field of strategic communications, media relations and public affairs since joining Fiona Hutton & Associates in 2007.

At our firm, she has been an integral part of our communications/message development team and a media coach for our clients. Her background in media and politics has made her an invaluable strategist and an effective adviser in the development and deployment of communications plans. She also has developed an expertise in “new media,” or Internet-based communications.

Privately, Ms. Mecoy leads the public relations team for a South Bay Christmas event that draws nearly 8,000 people. She is the chair of the South Bay Community Council for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and chairs a fundraising team for the organization.

She led a tsunami relief team to Indonesia in 2006, and she is a member of the Public Relations Society of America and the Los Angeles World Affairs Council. Ms. Mecoy graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Oklahoma with a B.A. in Journalism-News Communication.

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Ann Newton
Senior Account Executive

Ann Newton is our specialist at connecting people and organizations to produce a winning coalition for issues, projects and campaigns. She has an extensive background in coalition-building and community outreach strategies, having successfully deployed and implemented these strategies for a broad spectrum of corporate, non-profit and political clients, as well as constituency groups ranging from healthcare to environmental interests.

She is skilled at managing and implementing an outreach or coalition-building program from the initial planning stages to a successful conclusion. She understands the issues and the organizations involved, and she maintains a large network of contacts in organizations and interest groups around the state that can be critical to successful coalitions.

Active in statewide politics, Ms. Newton has assisted in the implementation of statewide ballot measure campaigns in California, from signature qualification through final Election Day activities.

She also manages corporate accounts, working with our clients to develop concise and effective messages and then effectively communicate those messages to organizations throughout California. She develops key communications tools, including all collateral documents, Internet communications, web sites, brochures and other materials.

She has used these skills to manage and implement earned media efforts, including a statewide editorial board outreach program for Propositions 94, 95, 96 and 97, the Indian gaming measures approved by California voters in February 2008. She also helped establish two of the nation’s largest coalitions in support of stem cell research, the Missouri Coalition for Lifesaving Cures and the Kansas Coalition for Lifesaving Cures. Her coalition-building and outreach expertise played a crucial role in the 2006 passage of Missouri’s Amendment 2, the Stem Cell Research & Cures Initiative.

Ms. Newton also helped manage the coalition-building and outreach efforts for Proposition 84, the Clean Water & Coastal Protection Bond, a $5.4 billion bond measure California voters approved in 2006. On an extremely crowded ballot, Ms. Newton was largely responsible for building the largest coalition of any measure on the November 2006 statewide ballot. Additionally, she has managed statewide outreach for the Association of California Water Agencies award-winning public education program, entitled “California’s Water: A Crisis We Can’t Afford”.

Ms. Newton has been with Fiona Hutton & Associates since 2005 and is a member of the Public Relations Society of America. She graduated from Pepperdine University with a B.A. in Political Science.

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Alma Hernandez
Senior Account Executive

Alma Hernández, a skilled communications specialist with expertise in state government and policy-making, serves as a vital connection between our clients and their communications goals.

A former press secretary and campaign manager for several California lawmakers and legislative candidates, she is a talented, innovative and extremely well-organized supervisor and coordinator of communications and outreach programs at our firm.

 Since joining Fiona Hutton & Associates in 2009, Ms. Hernández has skillfully served our clients with her in-depth knowledge of the state’s media and her extensive network of government and political contacts.  Her years of campaign experience give her the unique ability to move quickly and respond adroitly to the ever-changing political climate – both essential talents for serving clients involved in complex and often controversial issues.

 Her firsthand experience in developing and enacting ground-breaking legislation during the six years she worked at the state Capitol give her the knowledge and the capabilities clients need to create successful communications programs that will produce winning results in the political arena.

Ms. Hernández also has her finger on the pulse of the state’s rapidly growing Latino population and its leadership. Fluent in English and Spanish, Ms. Hernández grew up in California’s Central Valley and provides a rare perspective on the culture and the values of the state’s Latino communities. She is well-versed in the cultural characteristics of California’s diverse communities and provides indispensable advice to clients seeking to target specific audiences.

Previously, she served in top positions on the campaign and legislative staffs of several Latino lawmakers, including the Vice Chair of the Latino Caucus, Assemblymember Tony Mendoza. A top staff member in the Assembly’s Democratic Caucus under former Speaker Fabian Núñez, the leadership sent her to direct campaign efforts in highly targeted legislative races at crucial points in the 2002, 2004 and 2006 elections.

She also has experience in working with statewide trade associations, having previously served as the Associate Director of government relations at the California Medical Association, an organization of 35,000 physicians. In addition, she has statewide media experience, having previously served as the press secretary for Board of Equalization Member Jerome E. Horton.

A native Californian, Ms. Hernández graduated from the University of California, Berkeley with a B.A. in Rhetoric and Political Science, and she is a graduate of Hispanas Organized for Political Equality (HOPE) Leadership Institute. 

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Elizabeth Craver
Account Coordinator

Elizabeth Craver, an adept organizer and skillful manager, serves as our connection for establishing and maintaining the technical systems for external advocacy and communications programs.

With an expertise in Internet communications, she assists in the coordination of website development and social media at our firm. She leads our data collection efforts, quickly and efficiently organizing and synthesizing research materials and background for clients and for use in external communications.

Ms. Craver is also a highly organized and efficient contact for the vast array of individuals and organizations involved in our extensive outreach and coalition-building campaigns. Her attention to detail and her ability to coordinate and organize a fast-moving team is essential to our firm’s winning communications strategies for multiple clients.

Since joining the firm in 2009, Ms. Craver has helped coordinate our organizational support and outreach efforts for the Southern California Water Committee’s communications, education and advocacy efforts. She’s also been an integral part of our communications team working on behalf of a coalition of park supporters seeking additional funding to protect state parks and conserve wildlife.

Previously, Ms. Craver served as a communications assistant to a health and wellness facility in the marketing of special events and conferences. She also helped develop a health education program for students at George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services.

As a past coordinator for the Friendship Circle Walk to benefit children with autism, she is experienced at organizing and communicating with community members on important issues.

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