The Fresh Produce Industry’s New Chief Advocate
Dave Puglia is a political veteran and public policy expert and now the leader of one of the most influential trade associations in agriculture
By Stephanie Metzinger T he blaring ring from the phone pierces through the hotel room, nearly knocking the headset off of its base. A second ring sends vibrations that echo off the walls, nearly knocking Dave Puglia, press secretary to Dan Lungren, out of bed. It’s 4 a.m. on November 6, 1990. Puglia, who is now functioning off of two hours of sleep over the past 48 hours, drowsily picks up the headset, “Hello?” “Get the candidate out of bed, gather the rest of the team and get to his suite as fast as possible. I think we are going to win.” It was veteran GOP political consultant Ken Khachigian with news that immediately jolted Puglia awake. For the past year, Puglia had put in 16 hour days, 7 days a week, dedicating his every waking moment to help Dan Lungren win the open seat for Attorney General of California. Watching the votes roll in on election night rightfully devastated the Lungren team, as their opponent, San Francisco District Attorney Arlo Smith, pulled ahead, built a lead and seemingly secured the victory. One by one, the candidate and his team retreated to their rooms in the hotel. However, that disappointment quickly turned into excitement. Khachigian had been up calling county registrar offices inquiring about the number of absentee votes still to be processed. After crunching the numbers, he projected that Lungren would eke out a win, when all the votes were counted. This was the incredible moment when Puglia and his team realized that thousands of hours of hard work might actually pay off. When the announcement that Lungren had won by three-tenths of a percentage point was officially made several weeks later, Puglia knew that he had won one for the good guys.
If you have never met Dave Puglia, his political acumen and unrelenting passion for influencing public policy will impress you. Whether it’s helping a dedicated political leader win and succeed in elected office or fighting for agricultural water, his intelligent and confident style serves as the foundation for getting the job done. Politics runs in his blood, and he is a walking encyclopedia of names, dates and facts. If you ask him a question related to California or U.S. politics, he will likely know the answer and immediately go into great detail about the historical context. Because of his natural drive to understand the nuances of public policy, some may refer to Puglia as a policy wonk. But he also understands the relational side of policymaking, the relationships that must be developed and nurtured to effect real change. He also understands his role as an advocate for Western Growers (WG) members and is unapologetic in his defense of the industry. “You don’t really change public policy in a bold way when you’re not bold. And as a consultant I had found that many trade associations aren’t bold,” said Puglia, speaking about his initial apprehension to join WG in 2005 as vice president of state government affairs. “However, I learned very quickly from my conversations with Tom [Nassif] and Jasper [Hempel] that this was nothing like the trade associations I had encountered as a consultant. Tom made clear to me that bold action is not only possible here but expected,” Puglia continued. After meeting the board of directors, a group he boasts is comprised of owners and CEOs that are risk-takers with
10 Western Grower & Shipper | www.wga.com JANUARY | FEBRUARY 2020
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