Chris Caldwell, Who Led Sanders’ Winning Campaign, Establishes His Own Firm

Chris Caldwell (Jason Burt)

Chris Caldwell, who was campaign manager for Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ successful and historic run to be Arkansas’ first female governor, has set up a full-service lobbying, government relations and political consulting agency in Little Rock.

Caldwell, who is an adviser on Sanders’ transition team as she takes office Jan. 10, succeeding Gov. Asa Hutchinson, has also been tapped for Sanders’ re-election campaign in 2026, even though it’s far into the future.

Caldwell announced his plans Wednesday in a news release, calling his new firm a “voice for common-sense policies” to help Arkansas move forward.

“My time leading two successful statewide campaigns and working in government service at the national level has fully equipped me for this new venture, and we are ready to hit the ground running in 2023,” Caldwell said in the news release.

Along with his roles in the recent election, in which Sanders beat Democrat Chris Jones with nearly 63% of the vote, Caldwell is known for serving as federal co-chairman of the Delta Regional Authority in the Trump administration, and for his work on the staff of U.S. Sen. John Boozman, R-Arkansas. He also worked on the presidential campaign of Sanders’ father, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, in 2008.

A Bryant native and graduate of the University of Arkansas, he now lives in Little Rock.