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Mary-Patricia Wray, J.D. - Founder
Mary-Patricia Wray, founder of Top Drawer Strategies, is a graduate of The Ohio State University (B.A.) and Loyola University New Orleans College of Law (J.D.) with more than a decade of government relations, public relations, and public policy experience in Louisiana. MP serves on the transition council of Governor Jeff Landry and as a strategic adviser on the transition process. She also serves as a senior advisor to Lt. Governor Billy Nungesser. MP is an adjunct professor of law at Tulane Law School in New Orleans, where she teaches Legislative and Administrative Advocacy, focusing on legislative drafting and agency rule-making, where her clinical course at the law school focuses on the Louisiana Constitution of 1974.
Before moving to Louisiana from Ohio in 2008, she worked for Ohio Governor Ted Strickland and Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray, later head of the Consumer Affairs Protection Agency. After focusing on constitutional law and administrative procedures in law school, MP put her knowledge
to good use at the Louisiana Capitol. In 2012, she began representing clients focused on improving their communities by investing in public education and increasing access to high quality healthcare. She also works on policy issues surrounding criminal justice reform, healthcare delivery systems, economic development, multimodal transportation, coastal transportation, affordable energy, finance and tax issues, non-profit advocacy and local and municipal government.
Her expertise in messaging to moderate voters, and ability to persuade women voters, has led her to win three statewide campaigns in five years. MP served as one of the only staffers in the early years of John Bel Edwards’ 2015 campaign, securing victory for the only Democratic statewide elected official in Louisiana and the only Democratic governor in the Deep South. Her award winning advocacy contributed to another upset victory, 2018’s “Yes on 2” ballot initiative to erase one of Louisiana’s last remaining Jim Crow era laws and require the use of unanimous juries. She also led the successful statewide “No on 5” campaign, against payments in lieu of taxes, and the Foster Campbell for Public Service Commission campaign, a 24 parish race, in 2020.
MP has been recognized as an American Association of Political Consultants as a Top 40 under 40 for her work on more than fifty candidate and issue based campaigns and she brings an expertise in earned media and press management, digital advertising, television and radio production to her job in Government Relations to enhance the reputation and success her clients. She is involved in the Tulane and Loyola University communities, working to promote public interest as the highest good in every curriculum. She is the proud mother of Henry Lee and Weber Wray and resides in Baton Rouge with her husband, Ira.
Hannah Michel Hanks - Director of Strategic Communications
Hannah Michel Hanks, Director of Strategic Communications at Top Drawer Strategies, is an accomplished young professional with a proven track record in strategic communications. Her journey in communications began at Louisiana State University, where she earned her Bachelor of Arts in Mass Communication, Public Relations with an emphasis on Energy and Public Affairs. She graduated with full college honors as a University Medalist and Distinguished Communicator.
Hannah’s drive for fostering impactful connections made her a leader on campus, where she served as President of the LSU chapter of the Public Relations Student Society of America and Digital Managing Editor of LSU’s student newspaper, Reveille. In this role, she helped the Reveille earn multiple awards regionally and nationally.
Hannah’s experience encompasses a range of successful endeavors, including running an award-winning awareness campaign, consulting with a top Fortune 500 company and interning at a prominent full-service communications firm in Baton Rouge. This experience underscores her ability to navigate Louisiana’s complex political landscape with success and effectively convey messages that change behavior and drive action.
Her ability to distill complex concepts into clear, compelling narratives and package the narratives for effective consumption sets Hannah apart in the field of communications. She brings these skills, along with her passion for people with her into her role at Top Drawer.
Hannah lives with her husband, Timothy, and her dogs, Chicot and Jack, in Lafayette, where she spends time with her family and friends. In her free time, she enjoys reading, crocheting, meeting new people, hearing about their experiences and applying that information in her work to become a better communicator.