Clint Reilly, the Bay Area milkman who rose to manage the campaigns of some of California’s most influential political figures, has died at the age of 79.
An experienced political consultant, Reilly has led the early winning campaigns of some of the most recognizable names in California politics: former Speaker of the US House Nancy Pelosi, Sen. Barbara Boxer and Seni. Dianne Feinstein.
Brandon Heist, head of business for the Clint Reilly Organization, in a statement sent to The Times that Reilly died over the weekend in San Francisco. He died surrounded by family, who requested privacy. The San Francisco Examiner newspaper, which Reilly bought in 2020, previously announced the death of its owner on Sunday.
“I will always be grateful for Clint’s friendship and mentorship over so many years,” Pelosi said in a statement. “As the manager of my first congressional campaign in 1987, he brought his unparalleled strategic sense to help create and amplify my slogan: A Voice That Will Be Heard.”
In a 1987 article, The Times he attributed the success of Pelosi’s congressional bid to money — her campaign spent $1 million, more than her 13 opponents combined — and the sophisticated voting system Reilly set up. At the time, Pelosi was a 46-year-old mother of five and a party activist known for raising large sums of money for Democratic candidates.
Reflecting on Pelosi’s ascension last November, Reilly wrote in the San Francisco Examiner op-ed“The secret to being a political consultant is that you never know how the winning candidate’s career will turn out.”
Reilly’s legacy extended beyond pulling politicians into office.
He helped revolutionize modern campaigns, said Oakland political consultant Jim Ross, who worked for Reilly throughout the ’90s, including the election and re-election campaigns of San Francisco Mayor Frank Jordan.
In the ’80s, Reilly was among the first consultants to mobilize grassroots organizing with a new technology: using voter list data to segment and target key voters for success and persuasion, Ross said.
“It was a way to make sure you’re using resources the right way,” Ross said.
Reilly’s data-driven voter targeting tactics helped Feinstein, the former Mayor of San Francisco, to victory. remember the effort in 1983. They later had a public disagreement in 1989 during Feinstein’s failed gubernatorial campaign.
Reilly’s portfolio was not entirely Democratic. In 1993, he contacted the businessman Richard Riordan’s successful campaign for Mayor of Los Angeles with addressing the concerns of homeowners about unemployment, crime and other signs of urban decay. When elected, Riordan became the first Republican mayor of Los Angeles in 36 years — and no Republican has been elected to that office since.
Reilly also advises the California insurance industry.
In 1988, he led the insurance industry’s $60-million campaign to defeat Propositions 104 and 106. The two insurance industry-sponsored measures were designed to compete with Propositions 100 and 103, plans supported by attorneys and consumer advocates seeking to reform the industry.
Voters eventually passed Proposition 103, which promised to roll back the insurance rate and created the elected role of state insurance commissioner. But Ross said it was just one example of how Reilly will find creative ways to achieve his client’s goals.
“Clint really pioneered in that election the idea of running competitive tactics,” Ross said. “The fix was incredibly popular, it was going to be successful, so instead of dealing with it directly, he ran through the competition.”
In 1994 profile in The Times, from when Reilly ran Democrat Kathleen Brown’s bid for governor, described him as “one of the most powerful and feared political figures in California.”
“When your opponent knows you have him (her) on your side, it’s chilling,” former San Francisco Mayor Frank Jordan told The Times. “It’s definitely better to have him inside the tent than outside.”
Born in Oakland in 1947, Reilly was drawn to politics from an early age. He successfully ran for class president during fifth grade, with a campaign slogan his sister coined: “Take Advice, Vote for Clint.”
Reilly’s relationship Eugene Boylea Bay Area Catholic priest and civil rights activist known for his support of the Civil Rights Movement, shaped his political views. He was interested in supporting the “underdog,” Ross said.
Reilly spent nine years in seminary before turning to politics. His big break came in 1979, when he ran San Francisco Supervisor Quentin Kopp’s mayoral campaign. Kopp was lost, but Reilly’s name remained.
He quickly gained a reputation for charging top dollar for his campaign strategies and for his heavy-handed campaign spending. In 1982, after Reilly brought Boxer into his first congressional race, he fired him for spending too much money on the campaign, the Times reported in a 1994 profile.
As a manager, Reilly was “very demanding,” Ross said, adding, “I’ve also read pieces of direct mail five or six times because of him.”
He also had a generous side, Ross said. Reilly spent time teaching young workers the art of campaigning, a rarity in politics. Even after leaving political talk and focusing more on real estate, Reilly continued to help candidates through fundraising and messaging.
Reilly ran for mayor of San Francisco in 1999 and later focused on local media and philanthropy, founding an organization. non-profit in 2008 to provide scholarships for low-income students to attend private college preparatory schools.
Reilly’s passing will not change the current structure or operations of the Clint Reilly Organization, Heist said. The organization’s press division includes the San Francisco Examiner – which is Reilly earned in 2020 beside it now-no longer works affiliated with SF Weekly – and the Nob Hill Gazette, respectively you bought in 2016. The organization also has a hospitality company and a real estate division.
“The organization’s commitment to its employees, partners and community remains intact,” said Heist.
Condolences poured in from leaders across California on Monday.
Gov. Gavin Newsom and his wife Jennifer Siebel Newsom in a statement honored Reilly as a “San Francisco institution” with a brilliant mind and generous heart.
San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie said social networks the city “lost a community leader who left a lasting mark on our city.”
Reilly is survived by his wife Janet and two daughters, Jill and Ava. Memorial arrangements will be announced later.
