Ralph Reed

Ralph Reed is chairman and CEO of Century Strategies, a public relations and public affairs firm. He has advised numerous Fortune 500 companies and served as a senior advisor to the George W. Bush presidential campaigns in 2000 and 2004.

As chairman of the Georgia Republican Party in 2002, he helped elect the first GOP Governor in 130 years, gained control of state Senate, and elected a U.S. Senator and two members of Congress. Reed has worked on seven presidential campaigns, including as chairman of the Southeast Region for the Bush-Cheney ’04. He has advised 88 campaigns for U.S. Senate, Governor and Congress over the past quarter century.

The Wall Street Journal called Reed “perhaps the finest political operative of his generation.” He was named one of the top ten political newsmakers in the nation by Newsweek, one of the twenty most influential leaders of his generation by Life magazine, and one of the 50 future leaders of America by Time magazine. As executive director of the Christian Coalition (1989-1997), he built one of nation's most effective grassroots organizations and played a pivotal role in the election of the first Republican Congress in 40 years. Under his leadership, the Christian Coalition grew from 2,000 members to over 2 million members and supporters in 3,000 local chapters, with a budget of $27 million.

He is a sought-after political commentator on television whose columns have appeared in The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. He is the author and editor of three best-selling books. He served as executive director, College Republican National Committee (1982-1984), and as youth co-chairman of the re-election campaign of President Ronald Reagan.

Reed serves on the boards of the School of Public and International Affairs at the University of Georgia, the Northeast Georgia Council of the Boy Scouts, and SafeHouse, a faith-based organization helping the poor.

Reed grew up in Toccoa, Georgia, and has a B.A. from the University of Georgia and Ph.D. in American History from Emory University. He and his wife, Jo Anne, have four children and reside in Duluth, Georgia.