Mark Sanders, Georgia Lobbyist
History
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Sanders and Associates was founded in 1995 as a comprehensive government relations and public affairs practice focused on providing quality custom solutions for corporate, association, and institutional clients in Georgia. Prior to the founding of Sanders and Associates, Sanders was a partner in the pioneering government affairs consulting firm of Ginn, Edington, Wade and Sanders with offices in Washington and Atlanta.
Throughout his career, Mark Sanders has sought to provide valuable seasoned counsel with the highest level of professional integrity and commitment to client service, earning the respect of his peers and leading corporations and institutions along the Atlanta-Washington political axis.
Our Team
Mark Sanders knows Georgia. He's been a fixture at the Capitol's Gold Dome since the 1970's and today is one of the state's most trusted and successful government affairs professionals. Sanders is an eighth generation Georgian and respected attorney who is founder and president of Sanders and Associates.
As a precursor to his lobbying career, Sanders served as a key staff member in all three branches of Georgia state government as well as the United States Congress. Most notably, he served on the personal staff of Governor Joe Frank Harris as Special Assistant for Intergovernmental Relations, acting as the State of Georgia's principal liaison to the Georgia Congressional Delegation, federal agencies, the National Governors Association, the Southern Governors Association, and other national and regional policy groups. Sanders later led The University of Georgia’s governmental, corporate, and foundation relations efforts as Atlanta Office Director.
A native of Athens, Sanders is a 1979 magna cum laude graduate of The University of Georgia’s Henry W. Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication where he majored in News / Editorial Journalism with a minor in Political Science and Business. As an undergraduate, he was elected to membership in Phi Beta Kappa, Phi Kappa Phi, Kappa Tau Alpha, and Golden Key national honor societies . He subsequently earned his Juris Doctor degree at The University of Georgia’s Joseph Henry Lumpkin School of Law and was admitted to the State Bar of Georgia in 1984.
Sanders is a 1993 graduate of Leadership Georgia and a member of the Georgia Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors; the Georgia College and State University Foundation Board of Trustees; the Developmental Disabilities Ministries of Georgia Board of Trustees; the Associated Baptist Press, Inc. Board of Directors; and President of the ABP Foundation. He has formerly served as a Vice President of The Univerity of Georgia Alumni Society and was a longtime member of the Boards of Visitors at the Wake Forest University School of Divinity as well as Mercer University's Georgia Baptist College of Nursing.
Sanders remains an active member of the State Bar of Georgia and is admitted to practice before the Supreme Court of Georgia, Court of Appeals of Georgia , the several Courts of Law and Equity in Georgia, and the United States District Court for the Middle District of Georgia. He is likewise an active Member with Distinction of the Georgia Professional Lobbyists Association.
Sanders is married to the former Elizabeth (Beth) Browning of Adel. They have two adult children and reside just outside of Watkinsville, GA.
Mark Sanders, Jr. has served as Legislative Director for Sanders and Associates since joining the firm in October of 2020.
Prior to joining Sanders and Associates, Mark served as an associate partner at a boutique business strategy consulting firm. In this role, Mark performed operational assessments and assisted with lean transformations in the firm's operations consulting division. Additionally, Mark led efforts in project management and communication strategy.
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Prior to his experience in the private sector, Mark served as a staffer in both the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate, working for three different members of the Georgia Congressional Delegation. During his time on Capitol Hill, Mark served as a policy advisor, providing legislative counsel on a wide-range of policy issues such as healthcare, education, finance, the federal budget, and environmental issues. Through these diverse roles, Mark has gained keen insight into the unique geopolitical dynamics of the state of Georgia as well as the intricacies of federal and state legislative processes.
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Mark graduated from Washington and Lee University in 2015, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in economics from the Williams School of Business, Economics, and Politics with a minor in mass communications. While at Washington and Lee, Mark served as president of the university's Interfraternity Council, co-chair of the Campus Community Coalition, and was a state chair during the university's nationally-recognized Mock Convention in 2012. In addition to his studies at Washington and Lee, Mark completed a summer study in international political economics at the London School of Economics.
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Mark is married to the former Madison Smith of Marietta. They live in Athens, GA.
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