Biography
Clint Reilly was a former seminary student drawn to underdog progressive political causes when he founded Clinton Reilly Campaigns in the 1970s and helped pioneer a new profession of campaign and political consulting in California.
At Clinton Reilly Campaigns, Mr. Reilly combined science and creativity to craft superior political strategy and deliver sophisticated messages to targeted audiences using award-winning advertising and communication techniques.
Today, Mr. Reilly, who ran his last campaign as a professional political consultant in 1995, is the founder and owner of the Clinton Reilly Holdings, a real estate investment company, and the soon-to-open Credo Restaurant.
The combined Clint Reilly Companies, based at the historic Merchant Exchange Building on California Street in downtown San Francisco, have revenue of more than $23 million annually and are projected to employ 50 people by the close of 2009.
Throughout his career, Mr. Reilly’s passion has remained progressive political causes, social justice and civic engagement. He is a highly sought after adviser to candidates for elective office, and supporter of numerous charitable undertakings.
In 1999, he put his own reputation and money on the line to run for mayor of the city he grew up in and loves. And twice in the past decade he filed landmark lawsuits to maintain competition and independent journalism at Bay Area newspapers.
In November 2009, Mr. Reilly agreed to end his 14-year hiatus from professional political consulting to direct the government reform movement Repair California, which seeks voter approval to call a citizen convention in 2011 to rewrite the state’s constitution.
Mr. Reilly lives in the Seacliff neighborhood of San Francisco with his wife Janet Reilly and their daughters, Jill and Ava.