Governor-Elect Perdue Fills Key Posts in Administration

Friday, December 13, 2002

Contact: Office of Communications 404-651-7774

 

Atlanta - Governor-Elect Sonny Perdue today announced five additional appointments to key positions in his administration, which include three deputy chiefs of staff, a communications director, and executive counsel.

Perdue has selected Annie Hunt Burriss, Dylan Glenn, and Karen Handel to serve as deputy chiefs of staff and be part of the senior advisory team. Erin O'Brien will serve, as Director of Communications and Harold Melton will be Executive Counsel. With the exception of Harold Melton who will report directly to the Governor, all will report to Chief of Staff, Eric Tanenblatt.

As the Executive Counsel, Harold Melton will be the Governor's chief legal advisor. Melton presently serves as Senior Assistant Attorney General for the Georgia Department of Law in charge of the Consumer Interests division.

He began working for the Georgia Department of Law in 1991 and has held several positions within the organization over his eleven years of service.

Annie Hunt Burriss will assist the governor in creating and directing his legislative policy agenda. Currently she is the Associate Vice Chancellor of Economic Development for Georgia's university system. Her previous positions in both the public and private sector have made her a respected planner in the field of economic development and policy.

Dylan Glenn, who currently serves as a Special Assistant to President Bush for Economic Policy, will be responsible for the Governor's intergovernmental and external affairs efforts. Prior to his current post in the White House, he served as an aide in the White House of President George H.W. Bush. Mr. Glenn is the founder of the non-profit South Georgia Economic Development Corporation and a former Republican nominee for Georgia's 2nd Congressional District.

Directing internal operations and a "customer service" focused constituent services department, Karen Handel will oversee scheduling, the Office of the First Lady, the Governor's Mansion, and other day-to-day administrative functions. Handel is currently President/CEO of the Greater North Fulton Chamber of Commerce and recently ran for the Fulton Board of Commission. Previously, she has held positions with CIBA Vision, KPMG, and Hallmark Cards. She was also an appointee in the Bush-Quayle Administration, serving as Marilyn Quayle's Deputy Chief of Staff.

Erin O'Brien will serve as the Governor's Director of Communications and will be responsible for the day-to-day operations of the press office as well as overall communications strategy. Most recently she managed her own Public Relations and Public Affairs firm, EOB Partners with client such as The White House, Earthlink and The Coca-Cola Company. She has close ties to both the current and past Bush Administrations and has served in various capacities with The Coca-Cola Company and WebMD Corporation.

"I am honored that such talented individuals are joining our efforts to build a new, more responsive Georgia," said Governor-elect Perdue. "This new team is made up of very unique men and women with broad and diverse perspective that will have an immediate impact on state government as we work to meet our citizens needs."