November 1, 2023
For Immediate Release
Contact: Corinne Day
Speaker Johnson Announces Senior Staff Hires
WASHINGTON — On Wednesday, Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-LA) announced his senior staff hires for his leadership team. Hayden Haynes will serve as Chief of Staff. Garrett Fultz will serve as Deputy Chief of Staff. Raj Shah will serve as Deputy Chief of Staff for Communications. Chris Bien will serve as Director of Floor Operations. Courtney Butcher will serve as Director of Member Services. Ashley Callen will serve as General Counsel. Hannah Fraher will serve as Director of House Operations. Dan Ziegler will serve as Director of Policy.
Please find details below.
Hayden Haynes will stay on as the Speaker’s Chief of Staff. He has served as the Congressman’s Chief of Staff since he was elected to the 115th Congress in 2017. Prior to that, Haynes served as the campaign manager and spokesman for the Congressman’s campaign. In his capacity as Chief, Haynes ran Johnson’s successful campaigns for Chairman of Republican Study Committee in 2018, Vice Chair of House Republicans in 2020, and Speaker of the House in 2023. Prior to leading Johnson’s office, Haynes served on the staff of Senator David Vitter and Vitter’s Louisiana gubernatorial campaign. A graduate of both Louisiana Tech and Gonzaga University, Haynes hails from Minden, Louisiana.
Garrett Fultz joins the Speaker’s team as Deputy Chief of Staff. He previously served in the Speaker’s personal office as his Deputy Chief of Staff and Legislative Director. In that capacity, Fultz oversaw the Speaker’s policy team and managed a wide range of issue areas, including defense, appropriations, energy, telecommunications, agriculture, and transportation and infrastructure. Prior to joining Johnson’s office, he served as a Legislative Assistant for Congressman Tom Marino (R-PA). Fultz has been on the Hill since 2017 and is a graduate of the University of Mississippi and Tulane Law School.
Raj Shah joins the Speaker’s team as Deputy Chief of Staff for Communications. Most recently, Shah served as Senior Vice President at Fox Corporation. Prior to joining Fox, Shah was a partner at Ballard Media Group. Previously, Shah served in the White House as Principal Deputy Press Secretary and Deputy Communications Director. Shah also served as Research Director and Deputy Communications Director at the Republican National Committee. Shah is a graduate of Cornell University.
Chris Bien joins the Speaker’s team as the Director of Floor Operations. He previously served in this role under former Speaker Kevin McCarthy where he led efforts to modernize Congress and served as an advisor on tech policy. A graduate of Georgetown University, Bien has been on the Hill since 2014 and worked on the Floor since 2016.
Courtney Butcher joins the Speaker’s team as Director of Member Services. She came from the House Republican Conference where she was the Director of Member Services. Prior to her work at Conference, she was on the Committee on Education and Labor where she was the Director of Member Services and Coalitions. She has been on the Hill since 2013 after working on the 2012 Romney for President campaign. Prior to joining the political world, Butcher taught seventh grade social studies. She is a graduate of Gordon College in Wenham, Massachusetts.
Ashley Callen joins the Speaker’s team as General Counsel. Most recently, she served as General Counsel to Majority Leader Steve Scalise. Prior to joining the Majority Leader, she was Deputy Staff Director at the Oversight Committee. Over the past twenty years, Callen has served in various committee staff leadership roles. Callen is a graduate of the University of South Carolina and the Antonin Scalia Law School.
Hannah Fraher joins the Speaker’s team as Director of House Operations. Most recently, she served as Senior Counsel at the Committee on House Administration and previously served as Senior Counsel for Congressman Mike Johnson in his personal office. Fraher earned her J.D. from the University of Virginia and her B.A. from the University of Central Florida.
Dan Ziegler joins the Speaker’s team as Director of Policy. Ziegler previously served as Executive Director of the Republican Study Committee during Speaker Johnson’s tenure as Chairman during the 116th Congress. Prior to his time at RSC, he was the Managing Director of Government Relations at Heritage Action for America and the Vice President of Strategic Initiatives at the American Energy Alliance. Ziegler also previously worked on Capitol Hill as a Legislative Director for Congressman Doug Lamborn (R-CO) during the 112th and 113th Congress. He began his career as a Special Assistant at the Department of the Interior during the George W. Bush Administration working for Secretary Dirk Kempthorne. He is a graduate of Malone College in Canton, Ohio.
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