Who We Are
Founded in 1978, O’Hara Lindsay Government Relations is one of Nebraska’s oldest and largest government relations firms. We have earned a reputation for effectively advocating for our clients. The firm is committed to a high level of client service and adherence to ethical principles.
JOHN LINDSAY
President/Lobbyist
John has a keen understanding of the sensitivities and the strategies needed to promote your interests in Nebraska.
Keeping a daily presence at the Unicameral during the session, John works closely with the state senators to ensure favorable outcomes. He places a premium on ethics, and fiercely protects the integrity and reputation of both clients and the firm.
John joined O’Hara Lindsay in 1997 and became president in 2008 when Paul O’Hara retired.
Prior to becoming a lobbyist, John served as a Nebraska state senator for two terms representing Omaha’s 9th legislative district. While there, his colleagues chose him to chair the Judiciary Committee, and before that he was Vice-Chair of the Executive Board.
He practiced law in Omaha for 13 years, starting out with his father and older brother. John clerked for the Honorable John Grant at the Nebraska Supreme Court for a year after law school.
John was born and raised in Omaha. John and his wife, Mary Beth, are the parents of four boys, John, Patrick, Bobby and David. John, a big fan of Little League baseball, coached for a number of years. John’s great-grandfather, John B. Furay, was a member of Nebraska’s first legislature in 1869. That may explain why it seems that John has politics in his blood!
DON WESELY
Lobbyist
Born in David City, Nebraska earned a B.A. from University of Nebraska-Lincoln and was selected for the Innocents Society which is the Chancellor’s senior honorary at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
Don was attending graduate school at UNL when he was elected to the Nebraska Legislature in 1978, at the age of 24. Don introduced or co-introduced more than 300 legislative bills successfully enacted into law during his 20 years of service. Don served as Chairman of the Legislature’s Health and Human Services Committee for fourteen years. He also chaired the Rules; Retirement; and Economic Development Committees and served on Banking, Commerce & Insurance; Transportation; Public Works; and Business & Labor Committees. Don also held many leadership positions in the National Conference of State Legislatures.
Wesely was elected Mayor of the City of Lincoln in 1999. Mayor Wesely was responsible for administering the City of Lincoln’s budget of $293 million and managing over 2,700 full and part-time city employees. Wesely declined to run for a second term in 2003.
After leaving office as Mayor of Lincoln, Don established a consulting business and lobbied for clients at the federal, state, and local levels of government. In 2008, Don joined O’Hara Lindsay Government Relations.
Don has three children and two grandchildren.
BLAIR MACDONALD
Lobbyist
Blair MacDonald joined the firm in 2015 as the director of client relations and was promoted to lobbyist following the 2018 legislative session. Since then, she has taken on some of our largest clients and excelled at coalition-building, with major successes both passing bills and defending against proposed legislation. Her command of complex issues, legislative history, procedural matters, and stakeholders is formidable.
Before joining us, Blair worked on several political campaigns from 2012 to 2015, including managing the campaigns of Senator Burke Harr of Omaha and Mayor of Lincoln, Chris Beutler. From 2013 to 2014, she worked as the campaign coordinator at the Archdiocese of Omaha, for the nonprofit’s successful $52 million “Ignite the Faith” capital campaign.
Originally from Fremont, Nebraska, Blair attended Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio. She graduated cum laude with her B.A. in Political Science, minoring in Italian language in 2012. Blair’s campaign background and development experience has been a great complement to O’Hara Lindsay’s strategic work and clientele.
RANDI SCOTT
Lobbyist
Randi Scott is an attorney and lobbyist with over 10 years of public policy experience. She has developed a fundamental understanding of the legislative process and a bi-partisan approach to lobbying to help advance clients’ legislative agendas in the Unicameral.
Randi represents client interests at the Nebraska legislature and executive branch. She is adept at drafting legislation and devising legislative agendas and is active at the Capitol during session advocating for clients, and garnering support from legislators and other stakeholders. Randi also provides policy analysis and has experience educating constituency groups to inform members about changes that will impact them in proposed or new legislation.
Prior to joining O’Hara Lindsay, Randi served as legislative aide to Senator Brett Lindstrom, who is republican. During that time, she developed a deep understanding of the issues related to retirement, banking and insurance, economic development, taxation and tribal relations. Additionally, she has managed Congressional, Legislative and local campaigns in Nebraska.
She has a strong background in education and spent several years as a teacher in both the Omaha and Lincoln public school systems. She also was a legal intern in the US Department of Education, Office of Civil Rights in 2009.
Randi and her husband, Chris, live in Omaha and are the parents of three children, Sophia, Donovan and Aaron. Randi played volleyball at Peru State College and is an avid fan of both Nebraska and Creighton volleyball.
HANNAH POE
Director of Client Relations
Hannah Sughroue Poe, a former O’Hara Lindsay intern, returned to the firm after ten years to join the team as Director of Client Relations and Office Manager in 2019.
Hannah is responsible for supervising the office, HR, payroll, and accounting matters, and overseeing our internship program. She handles legislative tracking, database management and design, produces and distributes client legislative reports, and Accountability & Disclosure compliance. As Director of Client Relations, Hannah provides logistics and support for clients in and out of the office, and coordinates legislative receptions, fundraisers, and outreach for clients and Senators.
Prior to joining O’Hara Lindsay, Hannah provided work incentives counseling to individuals on Social Security disability benefits at Easterseals Nebraska. Additionally, she spent several years in private law practice and is an active member of the Nebraska State Bar Association.
Hannah lives in Lincoln with her husband, Ben, and son, George. She enjoys music, reading, art, fine dining, gardening, and working on her (currently atrocious) golf game.