Hunter Bates (1988-1989)
Full Name: G. Hunter Bates
Education: B.A. English (1989), J.D. Harvard University (1994)
Year Elected: Junior
Involvment: Student Association (Student Senator), Baptist Student Union (President), Sigma Tau Delta English Honerary
Student Political Affiliation: Concerned Party
Hunter Bates' time as student body president of Eastern Kentucky University's Student Association was just the beginning of a long and successful professional career.
Following his graduation magna cum laude, he would attend Harvard University School of Law. He would graduate as number one in his class, was elected class marshal and selected to give the student commencement address. He also clerked during this time for the Hon. Eugene Siler Jr. of the U.S. Court of Appeal, Sixth District. Following a short time as an attorney for a law firm in Washington, he would work for Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell as a member of his legal counsel. He would also be appointed for a short time as Senior Counsel of the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration.
Bates’ relationship with Senator McConnell had begun during his time in law school, during which he worked as a special assistant during his 1990 reelection campaign. He would be promoted to McConnell’s Chief of Staff, a position he would serve in for two years, and then served as McConnell’s campaign manager during his 2002 reelection campaign.
He would depart from McConnell following his victory, and return to Kentucky. He would be selected by Representative Ernie Fletcher (KY-6) to be his running mate for his gubernatorial campaign in 2003. However, following a complaint, a judge ruled that Bates failed to meet the residency requirements to run for Lt. Governor due to his time in Washington and was disqualified from the ballot. Afterwards, he returned to EKU following an appointment to the Board of Regents by his former running mate, Governor Ernie Fletcher. In 2005 he would be elected chair of the board, a position he would serve until the expiration of his term in 2010.
During this same time he would found Bates Capital Group, Commonwealth Alliances, and Republic Consulting while also serving as counsel for Frost, Brown, Todd. He would then depart from these ventures and join the law firm Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer, and Feld LLP, first as a consultant, and then as partner and co-chair of the firm’s lobbying wing. Since being elevated to this position, Bates’ has been consistently ranked as one of the top lobbyists in Washington by The Hill for seven consecutive years.