Ballard Partners entered the crowded lobbying arena in 2017, and as recently as last year it was ranked outside the top 15 firms in terms of lobbying revenue. But thanks to its close ties to the Trump administration, the firm rocketed to the top of the list in the second quarter of 2025.
Ballard’s income mushroomed to $20 million during April, May and June, an increase of $6.1 million over the previous period. While Brownstein, Hyatt — the top lobbying firm every year from 2021 to 2024 — remains the overall leader for the year, it saw an increase of just $1.7 million in Q2 to $18.5 million. If Ballard maintains a lead in each of the next two quarters, it would not only dethrone the reigning champ — it could break the record for annual earnings ($67.8 million, set last by Brownstein, Hyatt).
The firm’s ballooning revenue can be attributed to its success in representing foreign governments — and, perhaps more importantly, its close ties to President Donald Trump, as they have paced each other’s advancements.
Ballard Partners is based in Trump’s home state of Florida, and the firm opened its Washington, D.C., office in 2017, when Trump began his first term. Firm revenue nearly hit $9.7 million in 2017, placing it outside the 20 most profitable firms that year. Ballard’s revenue rose during Trump’s first term, reaching $24.2 million in 2020. After President Joe Biden took office in 2021, revenue fell back to $17.4 million, never reaching $20 million in annual lobbying earnings during that four-year period.
But during the last quarter of 2024, as Trump prepared to return to the White House, Ballard Partners saw lobbying earnings increase to $6.1 million — the only quarter in which it passed the $5 million mark during the Biden administration.
Early reliance on foreign clients
Beyond being most active in trade, health and tax issues, Ballard has utilized its close Trump ties to foster relationships with foreign governments. Armed with one of the most powerful connections in the world, Ballard has stocked its client list with top foreign companies, involved itself in international conflicts and influenced international relations.
For example, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Dominican Republic contacted the firm’s founder, Brian Ballard, in an attempt to acquire some of the dwindling supply of the COVID-19 medication remdesivir. In exchange for more than $100,000 a month in fees, Ballard utilized his diplomatic connections to forge connections between the U.S. and the Dominican Republic — although a shipment never materialized.
Ballard Partners is also a registered foreign agent for the Embassy of Japan, Taiwan and the Embassy for the Republic of Sudan, among a number of other foreign governments.
The firm’s early days demonstrated a cross-section of governments and companies trying to curry favor with the nascent Trump administration: the government of Turkey (whose relationship with the Trump administration remains a point of contention), the Dominican Republic, private prison company Geo Group Inc. and the American Health Care Association, among others. Revenue nearly doubled the following year, jumping from $9.7 million to $18.1 million.
Ballard has also injected itself into international relations, conflicts and U.S. sanctions against other countries, including lobbying on behalf of Kosovo during its conflict with Serbia and to improve U.S. relations with Guatemala.
The firm has also represented foreign companies trying to swing U.S. laws and policies in their favor. The Chinese company ByteDance brought on Ballard in 2024 as U.S. lawmakers were developing legislation to ban the company’s flagship product, TikTok. Trump has repeatedly delayed implementation of the ban. Nippon Steel, whose acquisition of U.S. Steel was blocked by Biden right before his exit from office, also enlisted Ballard to lobby on its behalf. The Nippon Steel purchase of U.S. Steel, valued $15 billion buyout, was finalized in June.
After BMW hired Ballard, the automobile manufacturer saw a 12.5 percentage point drop in import tariffs (falling from 27.5 percent). Shortly after the Ballard Partners entered the D.C. scene, Reynolds American, the leading seller of menthol cigarettes, used Ballard to help influence Trump to withdraw a proposed ban on menthol cigarettes.
The man behind the firm
Brian Ballard spent decades in state-level politics before becoming one of the most powerful influencers in Washington. He served as chief of staff for Florida Gov. Bob Martinez (R) from 1987 to 1990, and he led inaugurations for three other Republican governors. He also chaired the Florida Finance Committee for three Republican presidential nominees: John McCain, Mitt Romney and Trump.
He was chairman of the Trump Victory PAC in 2016 and 2017. As Trump prepared for his first term, Ballard played keys roles on the transition team and as vice chairman of the Presidential Inaugural Committee. He remained close with Trump throughout Biden’s term, while his firm lost nearly a dozen clients not even a year into the new presidency.
Shortly after the 2024 election, Ballard grew his firm’s client list by more than 130 — adding Palantir, JPMorgan Chase and others to an already extensive catalog — working to reap the benefits of what another Trump administration could provide.
But Ballard lost favor with Trump in March.
One of the firm’s employees encouraged the president to use his social media platform to demonstrate his support of cryptocurrency and a “Crypto Strategic Reserve,” including mentions of particular tokens. And, Trump did: “I will make sure the U.S. is the Crypto Capital of the World,” he wrote on Truth Social, championing the XRP token. But the Ballard employee did not tell Trump that the firm represents XRP creator Ripple Labs, angering Trump, Politico reported. Yet, Ballard is already back in the president’s favor and the firm announced new lobbyists including Thomas Boodry, a former special assistant to Trump and the National Security Council’s senior director for legislative affairs.
Deeper connections
Ballard Partners does not just rely on its founder to forge connections. A number of former Ballard lobbyists now serve in senior Trump administration roles, headlined by White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, Attorney General Pam Bondi and Deputy Director of Personnel Trent Morse.
Bondi was hired by Ballard in 2019, registering as a foreign agent to lobby on behalf of the government of Qatar, work that earned the firm $115,000 every month. (She left the firm in 2020 to defend Trump during his first impeachment trial but then returned to Ballard Partners, where her client list once again included Qatar.) The Qatari government recently gave the U.S. government a luxury airplane to be used as Air Force One. Bondi, as attorney general, signed off on the deal despite Democrats calling it a conflict of interest, on top of their previous complaints.
Bondi served as the lead attorney general in a lawsuit attempting to overturn Obamacare in Florida in 2012, alleging the law was unconstitutional. She also was part of a massive Republican effort in 2018 to walk back the Affordable Care Act provision banning health insurance companies from charging those with pre-existing conditions more or wholly denying coverage.
Bondi’s political action committee, And Justice for All, received a $25,000 donation from Trump in 2013. Shortly after, Bondi did not follow up on the nearly two dozen fraud complaints lodged against Trump University, although she previously had expressed support for a lawsuit against Trump. In 2016, the IRS deemed the donation a violation of tax laws, and Trump was ordered to pay a fine.
Wiles, who joined Ballard in 2011, ran Trump’s 2016 campaign in Florida and was influential in Ballard’s entrance into the D.C. lobbying landscape after his win. With Ballard, Wiles lobbied for the Pebble Partnership in 2019 to gain approval for the heavily contested Pebble Mine in Alaska, a project that environmentalists say will to cause immense harm.
Political maneuvering and intraparty clashes in Florida involving Ballard, Wiles, Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Trump campaign temporarily pushed Wiles to the outside. But Trump brought her back into the fold as one of the most influential players in his 2024 campaign. And as chief of staff she appears to have mended fences with Ballard.
Wiles has built a strong presence within the administration, already affecting policies regarding tobacco products. She previously lobbied for Swisher International, a tobacco company that has contested FDA attempts to ban flavored tobacco products (largely due to their use by minors). The Trump administration decision to withdraw the proposed menthol cigarette ban in January also included any potential limitations on the sale of flavored cigars, despite the previous administration declaring the attempted ban a “top priority.”
She also remained involved with Mercury Public Affairs after she was named as Trump’s chief of staff, The New York Times reported.
Morse worked in the Transportation Department, the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the White House during the first Trump administration. He then spent 2021 and 2022 as a lobbyist for Ballard Partners.
