Mike Rounds Hires Dick Wadhams #SDSEN | Shop Talk

Veteran GOP operative Dick Wadhams has signed on as general consultant for the leading candidate in one of the GOP’s top Senate pickup opportunities.

Former South Dakota Gov. Mike Rounds announced on Wednesday that he has retained Wadhams to help lead his campaign.

The election next year will come a decade after Wadhams’ last triumph in the state — managing now-Sen. John Thune’s 2004 upset of Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle.

“Dick’s reputation as a battle tested strategist, coupled with his insight into South Dakota’s political landscape make him the perfect complement to our team,” Rounds said in a statement. “We’ve been considering individuals to fill this role for months and we continued to come back to Mr. Wadhams.” Full story

Gary Peters Leads Poll, Hires Campaign Manager #MISEN

Peters is running for Senate. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call File Photo)

Democratic Rep. Gary Peters has a campaign manager and a lead in the polls — but he’s still awaiting a GOP opponent for the open-seat Senate race in Michigan.

With the Republican field likely to begin to take shape next month, the third-term Democrat announced on Tuesday that Julie Petrick has signed on as campaign manager. Petrick managed Peters’ first election to Congress in 2008 and is coming from the political team at EMILY’s List.

In the race for the seat of retiring Democratic Sen. Carl Levin, the 14th District’s Peters took an early lead in a hypothetical matchup with the 8th District’s GOP Rep. Mike Rogers, who is considering a bid. The poll was conducted by EPIC-MRA and found Peters with a 7-point lead, though a third of voters were undecided. Full story

Top Firm Hires Ex-NRSC Spokesman | Shop Talk

Former National Republican Senatorial Committee spokesman Brian Walsh has joined Singer Bonjean Strategies, the public affairs firm announced on Tuesday.

“Phil and Ron are two of the most respected communications strategists in the country today, and I couldn’t be more excited about joining their growing public affairs practice,” Walsh said in a press release. “Singer Bonjean brings a campaign approach to helping clients navigate the ever-changing environment in Washington, and I look forward to adding my experience to this effort.” Full story

Embroiled GOP Firm Hires Gingrich Operative | Shop Talk

Strategy Group for Media CEO Rex Elsass will announce on Tuesday that he has hired Rick Tyler as his company’s new president.

The announcement comes less than two weeks after Elsass filed a lawsuit against his company’s last president, Nick Everhart. That dispute has fixated the GOP consultant class. Full story

Democratic Fundraiser Mulls Run for Melvin Watt Seat

Watt has been nominated for a post in the Obama administration. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call File Photo)

Scott Dworkin, a Democratic fundraiser, is considering a run for North Carolina’s 12th District, he confirmed to CQ Roll Call  Monday morning.

Romney Aide Heads to GOP Firm | Shop Talk

Longtime Mitt Romney aide Lou Tavares is a new vice president at SCM Associates, a Republican direct marketing firm.

Tavares’ work with Romney goes back seven years, to his time as general counsel during Romney’s stint as governor of Massachusetts. In the 2012 presidential campaign, Tavares held the title of staff secretary and senior adviser. He oversaw outgoing media from the campaign. Previously, he was the chief operating officer and counsel of Romney’s Free and Strong America PAC.

“I am very excited to welcome Lou Tavares to the SCM Associates team,” President Stephen C. Meyers said in a release. “His years of experience helping to manage complex national operations and cross-channel marketing programs for Mitt Romney will help us offer our clients an even more fully-integrated and consistent marketing program.”

SCM’s clients include Romney, former Massachusetts Sen. Scott P. Brown, House Budget Chairman Paul D. Ryan of Wisconsin and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker.

Remainders: Recruitment Season

Here’s what you may have missed “At the Races” on Thursday …

• Following a couple of Senate recruitment setbacks for both parties this week, Shira Toeplitz posted a timeline of when candidates announced their Senate bids in the 2012 cycle for comparison.
• Kyle Trygstad looked into whether former Rep. Stephanie Herseth Sandlin, D-S.D., will jump into South Dakota’s open Senate race now that Democrat Rick Weiland announced his candidacy. It wouldn’t be the first time Herseth Sandlin and Weiland have faced off in a primary.
• Missouri state  Speaker Pro Tem Jason Smith, a Republican, released his first ad in the special election to fill former Rep. Jo Ann Emerson’s seat.
• The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee launched a new program to cultivate strong candidates in targeted districts for 2014. The DCCC has tapped eight Democratic candidates for the program so far.

What we’re mulling on Thursday … Full story

Redistricting Expert Joins Global Strategy Group | Shop Talk

Mark Gersh, a Democratic expert on redistricting, joined Global Strategy Group as a senior adviser on Wednesday.

Gersh joins the firm in an advisory role and will continue his current role as the Washington director of NCEC Services. Full story

Mark Sanford’s Winning Team #SC01 | Shop Talk

Sanford is coming back to Congress. (Mary Ann Chastain/Getty Images)

Rep.-elect Mark Sanford’s special election victory is a testament to his well-run, competent campaign organization.

The Republican’s personal baggage alone made this a competitive race — even in the GOP-heavy 1st District. It was further complicated by the low turnout and unpredictable nature of a special election.

This is the team that pulled it off: Full story

John Winston Joins Mission Control | Shop Talk

Mission Control, a Connecticut-based Democratic direct-mail firm, recently hired outgoing Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee National Political Director John Winston.

“I am also extremely excited about joining an equally wonderful and talented team at Mission Control. Ed, Adnaan, and the whole team do great work and even more importantly — win tough races,” he wrote in an email to contacts. Full story

Former Todd Akin Consultant Has Controversial Past | Shop Talk

Earlier this week, Abby Livingston broke the news about a major shake-up at a prominent GOP consulting firm, The Strategy Group for Media. One of the firm’s most prolific ad-makers, SGM President Nick Everhart, said he was terminated via email late on a Saturday night earlier this month.

The CEO of the firm, Rex Elsass, boasts a long client list that included seven freshmen and more than 20 incumbents from the 2012 cycle, according to SGM’s website. But he also played a big role in former Rep. Todd Akin’s bid for Senate in Missouri — a race widely viewed as one of the worst-run campaigns of the cycle.

But Elsass proved himself a controversial figure in the industry long before that. Roll Call detailed Elsass’ aggressive tactics in a 2012 profile of the GOP media consultant:

In the tiny world of political consulting, reputations and history have long life spans, especially when a firm does so much business.

“When you get into the race, he’s the first guy that contacts you,” one former client said. Full story

Manchin Campaign Manager Joins Mack-Sumner | Shop Talk

Fiona Conroy, a former campaign manager for Sen. Joe Manchin III, D-W.Va., has joined the new Democratic consulting firm Mack-Sumner.

“We are thrilled to have Fiona on our team,” partner Kevin Mack said in a Tuesday release. “She brings unmatched energy, unique experience and boundless creativity to Mack-Sumner.” Full story

Shop Talk: Hughes Joins Hilltop Public Solutions

Hilltop Public Solutions will name Craig Hughes, a top Colorado Democratic consultant, as its newest partner Tuesday.

Hughes, who served as Sen. Michael Bennet’s 2010 campaign manager in Colorado, is part of Hilltop’s expansion into the Western states. The firm recently hired operatives from Montana and Oregon. Full story

Shop Talk: RNC Names Director to Oversee State Party Rebuilding

Priebus is the RNC chairman. (Chris Maddaloni/CQ Roll Call File Photo)

The Republican National Committee on Wednesday named outgoing Oklahoma GOP Chairman Matt Pinnell as its new chief liaison to state parties.

As RNC state party director, Pinnell will lead the committee’s efforts to rejuvenate its state-based affiliations, many of which have proved ineffective since President George W. Bush left office. Pinnell will report to Chairman Reince Priebus and Political Director Chris McNulty, who are rebuilding the party based on recommendations from the RNC’s self-imposed autopsy, the “Growth and Opportunity Project.”

“At the RNC, we’re revamping our entire political field operation to be bottom-up and community based,” Priebus said in a statement. “That means the 50 state parties and territories must take a leading role.”

(See also in Roll Call: RNC Looks to Refurbish Ailing State Parties) Full story

Shop Talk: Carville Joins Draft-Hillary Super PAC

(Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call File Photo)

Updated 9:34 a.m. | The Ready for Hillary super PAC will announce on Thursday that Democratic strategist James Carville has joined its efforts, CQ Roll Call has confirmed.

Carville is the highest-profile Clinton loyalist to join the group, which aims to build a campaign infrastructure for former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton if she decides to run for president in 2016.

(See Shop Talk’s rundown of other Ready for Hillary hires here and here.)

Ready for Hillary is not directly affiliated with Clinton. Carville worked on President Bill Clinton’s campaigns for the White House.

The Washington Post first reported the Carville news early Thursday morning.

Update 9:34 a.m. 

Carville clarified his role to Politico. He said that he would not be “directly affiliated” with the group but is enthusiastic to help any organization that supports Clinton. Carville frequently lets groups like the campaign committees use his name in fundraising emails. A source at the PAC had previously confirmed the entire content of the Washington Post report to CQ Roll Call.