Ashley Landess Named President of South Carolina Policy Council

February 12, 2008

The South Carolina Policy Council has named Ashley Landess of Columbia, S.C. as its new president. Landess, who previously served as vice president for public affairs, was chosen for the top post by the organization’s Board of Directors.

“Ashley has played a major role in the growth of the Policy Council over the past decade,” said Board chairman Alex Kiriakides. “Her experience, credibility and expertise made her the clear choice to take the organization forward.”

Political leaders who look to the Policy Council for research and policy recommendations praised the appointment. Governor Mark Sanford said “Ashley has always been a strong advocate for substantive government reform and holding the line on government spending. I look forward to working with her and the Policy Council.”

S.C. Senate President Glenn McConnell said Landess was “the right person” to lead the group. “I have worked with Ashley for ten years, and I have always counted on her and the Policy Council to show leadership on the tough issues, and to stand up for the taxpayers in this state,” McConnell said.

S.C. Rep. Nikki Haley (Rep.-:Lexington) said she was pleased Landess would be the head of a group she called “the conscience” of the General Assembly. “Ashley Landess is one of the first people I call when I need substantive answers,” Haley said. “She’s also a tough leader, an expert on policy issues and a force to be reckoned with in Columbia.”

Landess has been with the Policy Council since 1998. In 2003, she was appointed by House Speaker David Wilkins to the S.C. Lottery Commission, where she continues to serve on the Commission’s Executive Committee. She served as Governor Sanford’s appointee to chair the S.C. School District Consolidation Committee and on the Governor’s Health Care Task Force. Landess is also on the S.C. Advisory Committee for the ONE campaign, an organization geared toward fighting global poverty.

Landess said she is looking forward to leading the Policy Council. “We face a series of tough challenges. Our schools are last in the nation, government growth is out of control and taxpayers are frustrated with the lack of transparency at all levels of government,” she said. “Fortunately, there are leaders who want to reform the system, and I look forward to helping them succeed.”

The South Carolina Policy Council is a non-partisan, non-profit public policy research foundation whose mission is to promote limited government and free enterprise. It was founded in 1986.