What distinguishes The Southern Group from others is where we draw our lobbyists from. Our lobbyists are almost all exclusively former government regulators, legislators or high-level government staff. We know what moves the wheels of government because, at one point in our careers, we moved those wheels ourselves.

15-20 years

National Children's Alliance, Bud Cramer Award
Florida Bar, Family Law Section, Legislative Achievement
Kristi House Service, Former President Service Award

SSG has won numerous fundraising awards and recognitions
Managing Partner, Miami office, The Southern Group
Chairman, Republican Party of Miami-Dade County
Executive Board, Republican Party of Florida

Nelson D. Diaz concentrates his practice on government and community relations. Nelson has successfully represented local governments, businesses, trade associations and other corporate clients before the Florida legislative and executive branches of government. Nelson has become one of Florida's young rising stars since serving as Chief Legislative Aide to the Former Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives, and now United States Senator, Marco Rubio.

In addition, Nelson has successfully represented corporate entities before the Miami-Dade County Board of County Commissioners, numerous Miami-Dade County agencies and departments, the City of Miami, the City of Hialeah, and several other municipal governments and authorities in Miami-Dade County. In addition to government relations, Nelson has successfully guided many corporate clients entering the South Florida market, providing community relations services. By advising new entrants to the market on who the key players are, which organizations to join, and how to navigate the local political waters, Nelson has assisted many clients successfully enter the South Florida and Miami markets.

Nelson began his political career as a volunteer in the 1996 Presidential campaign in Florida where he and many other young leaders, including now U.S. Senator Marco Rubio, State Senator Anitere Flores, Lt. Governor Carlos Lopez-Cantera, and many other now-elected officials, worked hard to build a strong Republican Party base in South Florida. Since then, Nelson has worked on countless political campaigns in Florida from federal races for Presidential and U.S. Senate, to state races for Governor, Cabinet offices, Florida House of Representatives, and Florida Senate, as well as many local government campaigns for county commission, city councils, and mayor's races. Nelson has also been active in various business and civic organizations locally, and counts many legislators, party officials, and legislative leaders among his personal friends. As a result of Nelson's service with U.S. Senator Rubio and his involvement in many campaigns, Nelson has established an extensive network of key contacts in Miami-Dade County and within the Florida Legislature. In fact, Nelson currently serves as the Chairman of the Republican Party of Miami-Dade County and serves on the executive board of the Republican Party of Florida.

Active in the local community, Nelson served on the City of Miami's Historical and Environmental Preservation Board, protecting the city's historical and environmental treasures, as well as the Miami-Dade County Community Council of West Kendall, a local land use and zoning board. Additionally, Nelson serves as the Immediate Past President of the Board of Directors for Kristi House, Miami-Dade County's child advocacy center for child victims of sexual abuse and human trafficking as well as the Board of Directors of the Good Government Initiative, a bi-partisan organization dedicated to cultivating leaders of excellence in South Florida. Recently, Florida Governor Rick Scott appointed Nelson to the statewide Children and Youth Cabinet for his service and advocacy on behalf of Florida's children.

Nelson attended Florida International University, where he earned his Bachelor's degree in International Relations, with a Certificate in Latin American and Caribbean Studies, as well as minors in Political Science and Geography. Nelson graduated from the University of Florida, College of Law, cum laude, and was admitted to the Florida Bar in 2004.

ROBERT BLAIR

(Florida)
Clients:

1) 211 Tampa Bay Cares, Inc.

2) 2357 Solutions

3) 831 Federal Acquisition, LLC dba / The Big Easy Casino

4) Accel Schools LLC

5) Breakthrough Miami, Inc.

6) Buccaneers Limited Partnership

7) Central Florida Expressway Authority

8) CGI Technologies & Solutions, Inc.

9) Charter Schools USA

10) City of Anna Maria

11) City of Indian Harbour Beach

12) City of West Melbourne

13) Classic Learning Initiatives, LLC

14) Coca-Cola Beverages Florida, LLC

15) Community Based Care of Brevard County dba Family Partnerships of Central Florida

16) Community Haven for Adults and Children with Developmental Disabilities, Inc.

17) Dominium Development & Acquisitions, LLC

18) Eli Lilly and Company

19) Energetico, Inc.

20) Estate of Danielle Maudsley, C/O Ralph Guito, Esquire

21) Estate of Makenzie Nevarez, a minor child, in care of Justice for Kids

22) ExamWorks, LLC.

23) Florida Alliance of Information and Referral Services, Inc.

24) Florida Atlantic University Foundation, Inc.

25) Florida Chiropractic Coalition, Inc.

26) Florida Community Care

27) Florida Crystals Corporation

28) Florida Development Finance Corporation

29) Florida Electric Cooperatives Association

30) Florida High School Athletic Association

31) Florida Optometric Association

32) Florida Partnership to End Domestic Violence

33) Florida Power & Light Company

34) Florida Studio Theatre, Inc.

35) Florida's Children First

36) Fontainebleau Development

37) Foot Print to Success Clubhouse, Inc.

38) Ged Lawyers, LLP

39) Grace Landing, Inc.

40) Guardians of Florida Animal Rescue Inc

41) Independent Living Systems

42) Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce

43) JAMARO/TTERRA

44) JoAnn Chiddister on behalf of C.C.

45) Kroll, LLC

46) Layla Estrada, a minor child, in care of Justice for Kids

47) LiFT Academy / LiFT University

48) Live Nation Entertainment

49) Marathon Petroleum Corporation

50) Marine Industries Association of Palm Beach County, Inc.

51) Matthews Bus Alliance, Inc.

52) Max Giannikos, by Waggener Law, PLLC

53) Meat Market Tampa LLC

54) Melbourne Tillman Water Control District

55) Menorah Manor Foundation, Inc.

56) Merlin Law Group, P. A.

57) Miami Dade County Tax Collector

58) Miami-Dade County Public Schools

59) Michele Mitchell on behalf of H.H.

60) Mobile Safe Zones LLC

61) Moleaer, Inc.

62) Morgan and Morgan o/b/o Sean Hurley

63) No Limits Academy

64) Nova Southeastern University

65) Novartis Services, Inc.

66) Orchard Therapeutics North America

67) Oscar Health

68) Palm Beach County

69) Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council DBA Pet Advocacy Network

70) Phillies Florida LLC

71) Pinnacle Ozone Solutions, LLC

72) PMI US Corporate Services Inc. and Affiliates

73) Precision Companies, Inc.

74) Private Care Association of Florida Inc.

75) Reading and Math, Inc.

76) Rogers Behavioral Health

77) RTR Financial Services, Inc.

78) Ruth Eckerd Hall, Inc.

79) Safe Families for Children Alliance

80) Saint Leo University, Inc.

81) Salvador Dali Museum, Inc.

82) Santa Fe College Foundation, Inc.

83) Sarasota County Tax Collector

84) Seafarer Exploration Corp

85) Sensys Gatso USA

86) SH Americas LLC

87) Sidecar Health, Inc.

88) Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Tampa Bay, Florida, Inc.

89) Southeast QSR, LLC

90) St. Petersburg Downtown Partnership

91) Stericycle, Inc.

92) StormQuant Inc.

93) Tampa Bay Chamber

94) Tampa Bay Water

95) Tampa Hillsborough Expressway Authority

96) The Academy at Glengary

97) The Association of Early Learning Coalitions

98) The Astronauts Memorial Foundation

99) The Building Industry Institute, Inc.

100) The Children's Trust

101) The Florida Holocaust Museum

102) The Promise Fund of Florida, Inc.

103) Trapbag

104) University of South Florida Foundation

105) USF Student Government

106) Verizon

107) Vets2PM, LLC

108) Walmart Inc.

109) Who We Play For

110) Williams Communications, Inc.

111) WOFT

112) Women of Tomorrow Mentor and Scholarship Program, Inc.

113) Young Mens Christian Association of Greater St Petersburg Inc

114) Zuffa, LLC

RONALD BOOK

(Florida)
  • (305) 935-1866

  • 4000 Hollywood Blvd.Suite 677-SHollywoodFL33021

Clients:

51) Florida Smoke Free Association

52) Fort Myers Community Redevelopment Agency

53) Gannett Media Group

54) Gate301 Miami, Inc.

55) Gold Coast Beverage Distributors, Inc

56) Goodwill Industries of Southwest Florida, Inc.

57) Grant Street Group

58) Hard Rock Stadium

59) Hillsborough Clerk of the Court and Comptroller

60) JARC Florida

61) Jewish Community Services of South Florida

62) Keiser University

63) Lauren's Kids

64) Learning Ally

65) MACtown

66) Miami Beach Community Health Center

67) Miami Jewish Health Systems

68) Miami Project/Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis

69) Miami-Dade County

70) Miami-Dade County Public Schools

71) Museum of Discovery & Science

72) Neptune Wholesale, Inc

73) New Horizons Community Mental Health Center, Inc

74) North Broward Hospital District (d/b/a Broward Health)

75) Older Adults Technology Services (OATS)

76) OpenGov

77) Pelican Harbor Seabird Station

78) Penn Credit

79) Performance Title Services, Inc

80) Public Health Trust-Jackson Memorial Hospital

81) Related Ross

82) Reyes Holdings, L.L.C.

83) SEED Foundation, Inc., The

84) Solemia

85) Solid Waste Authority of Palm Beach County

86) South Broward Hospital District

87) The GEO Group, Inc.

88) Thriving Mind South Florida

89) Title Clerk Consulting Company, LLC

90) Town of Davie

91) Town of Fort Myers Beach

92) Town of Loxahatchee Groves

93) Underdog Sports

94) University of Miami

95) Village of Estero

96) Village of Palm Springs

97) Village of Royal Palm Beach

98) Vitas Healthcare Corporation

99) White Rock Quarries

100) Whitman Family Development

ESTEBAN BOVO

(Florida)
  • (813) 527-0172

  • 19401 Shumard Oak DriveLand O' LakesFL34638

ROY CANNON

(Florida)
Clients:

JACQUELINE CORCORAN

(Florida)
  • (813) 527-0172

  • 19401 Shumard Oak DriveLand O' Lakes FL34638

Clients:

1) 211 Tampa Bay Cares, Inc.

2) 831 Federal Acquisition, LLC dba / The Big Easy Casino

3) Accel Schools LLC

4) Breakthrough Miami, Inc.

5) Buccaneers Limited Partnership

6) Central Florida Expressway Authority

7) CGI Technologies & Solutions, Inc.

8) Charter Schools USA

9) City of Anna Maria

10) Classic Learning Initiatives, LLC

11) Coca-Cola Beverages Florida, LLC

12) Community Haven for Adults and Children with Developmental Disabilities, Inc.

13) Dominium Development & Acquisitions, LLC

14) Eli Lilly and Company

15) Estate of Danielle Maudsley, C/O Ralph Guito, Esquire

16) Estate of Makenzie Nevarez, a minor child, in care of Justice for Kids

17) ExamWorks, LLC.

18) Florida Alliance of Information and Referral Services, Inc.

19) Florida Atlantic University Foundation, Inc.

20) Florida Chiropractic Coalition, Inc.

21) Florida Community Care

22) Florida Development Finance Corporation

23) Florida Electric Cooperatives Association

24) Florida High School Athletic Association

25) Florida Optometric Association

26) Florida Partnership to End Domestic Violence

27) Florida Studio Theatre, Inc.

28) Florida's Children First

29) Fontainebleau Development

30) Foot Print to Success Clubhouse, Inc.

31) Ged Lawyers, LLP

32) Grace Landing, Inc.

33) Guardians of Florida Animal Rescue Inc

34) Independent Living Systems

35) Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce

36) JAMARO/TTERRA

37) JoAnn Chiddister on behalf of C.C.

38) Larkin Community Hospital

39) Layla Estrada, a minor child, in care of Justice for Kids

40) LiFT Academy / LiFT University

41) Marathon Petroleum Corporation

42) Marine Industries Association of Palm Beach County, Inc.

43) Matthews Bus Alliance, Inc.

44) Max Giannikos, by Waggener Law, PLLC

45) Meat Market Tampa LLC

46) Menorah Manor Foundation, Inc.

47) Merlin Law Group, P. A.

48) Miami Dade County Tax Collector

49) Miami-Dade County Public Schools

50) Michele Mitchell on behalf of H.H.

51) Mobile Safe Zones LLC

52) Morgan and Morgan o/b/o Sean Hurley

53) No Limits Academy

54) Nova Southeastern University

55) Novartis Services, Inc.

56) Orchard Therapeutics North America

57) Palm Beach County

58) Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council DBA Pet Advocacy Network

59) Phillies Florida LLC

60) PMI US Corporate Services Inc. and Affiliates

61) Private Care Association of Florida Inc.

62) Reading and Math, Inc.

63) Rogers Behavioral Health

64) RTR Financial Services, Inc.

65) Ruth Eckerd Hall, Inc.

66) Saint Leo University, Inc.

67) Salvador Dali Museum, Inc.

68) Santa Fe College Foundation, Inc.

69) Sarasota County Tax Collector

70) Sensys Gatso USA

71) Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Tampa Bay, Florida, Inc.

72) Southeast QSR, LLC

73) St. Petersburg Downtown Partnership

74) Stericycle, Inc.

75) Tampa Bay Chamber

76) Tampa Bay Water

77) Tampa Hillsborough Expressway Authority

78) The Academy at Glengary

79) The Association of Early Learning Coalitions

80) The Astronauts Memorial Foundation

81) The Building Industry Institute, Inc.

82) The Children's Trust

83) The Florida Holocaust Museum

84) University of South Florida Foundation

85) USF Student Government

86) Verizon

87) Vets2PM, LLC

88) Walmart Inc.

89) Who We Play For

90) Williams Communications, Inc.

91) WOFT

92) Women of Tomorrow Mentor and Scholarship Program, Inc.

93) Young Mens Christian Association of Greater St Petersburg Inc

94) Zuffa, LLC

MICHAEL CORCORAN

(Florida)
Clients:

1) 211 Tampa Bay Cares, Inc.

2) 2357 Solutions

3) 831 Federal Acquisition, LLC dba / The Big Easy Casino

4) Accel Schools LLC

5) Breakthrough Miami, Inc.

6) Buccaneers Limited Partnership

7) Central Florida Expressway Authority

8) CGI Technologies & Solutions, Inc.

9) Charter Schools USA

10) City of Anna Maria

11) City of Indian Harbour Beach

12) City of West Melbourne

13) Classic Learning Initiatives, LLC

14) Coca-Cola Beverages Florida, LLC

15) Community Based Care of Brevard County dba Family Partnerships of Central Florida

16) Community Haven for Adults and Children with Developmental Disabilities, Inc.

17) Dominium Development & Acquisitions, LLC

18) Eli Lilly and Company

19) Energetico, Inc.

20) Estate of Danielle Maudsley, C/O Ralph Guito, Esquire

21) Estate of Makenzie Nevarez, a minor child, in care of Justice for Kids

22) ExamWorks, LLC.

23) Florida Alliance of Information and Referral Services, Inc.

24) Florida Atlantic University Foundation, Inc.

25) Florida Chiropractic Coalition, Inc.

26) Florida Community Care

27) Florida Crystals Corporation

28) Florida Development Finance Corporation

29) Florida Electric Cooperatives Association

30) Florida High School Athletic Association

31) Florida Optometric Association

32) Florida Partnership to End Domestic Violence

33) Florida Power & Light Company

34) Florida Studio Theatre, Inc.

35) Florida's Children First

36) Fontainebleau Development

37) Foot Print to Success Clubhouse, Inc.

38) Ged Lawyers, LLP

39) Grace Landing, Inc.

40) Guardians of Florida Animal Rescue Inc

41) Independent Living Systems

42) Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce

43) JAMARO/TTERRA

44) JoAnn Chiddister on behalf of C.C.

45) Kroll, LLC

46) Larkin Community Hospital

47) Layla Estrada, a minor child, in care of Justice for Kids

48) LiFT Academy / LiFT University

49) Live Nation Entertainment

50) Marathon Petroleum Corporation

51) Marine Industries Association of Palm Beach County, Inc.

52) Matthews Bus Alliance, Inc.

53) Max Giannikos, by Waggener Law, PLLC

54) Meat Market Tampa LLC

55) Melbourne Tillman Water Control District

56) Menorah Manor Foundation, Inc.

57) Merlin Law Group, P. A.

58) Miami Dade County Tax Collector

59) Miami-Dade County Public Schools

60) Michele Mitchell on behalf of H.H.

61) Mobile Safe Zones LLC

62) Moleaer, Inc.

63) Morgan and Morgan o/b/o Sean Hurley

64) No Limits Academy

65) Nova Southeastern University

66) Novartis Services, Inc.

67) Orchard Therapeutics North America

68) Oscar Health

69) Palm Beach County

70) Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council DBA Pet Advocacy Network

71) Phillies Florida LLC

72) Pinnacle Ozone Solutions, LLC

73) PMI US Corporate Services Inc. and Affiliates

74) Precision Companies, Inc.

75) Private Care Association of Florida Inc.

76) Property Appraiser of Miami-Dade County

77) Reading and Math, Inc.

78) Rogers Behavioral Health

79) RTR Financial Services, Inc.

80) Ruth Eckerd Hall, Inc.

81) Safe Families for Children Alliance

82) Saint Leo University, Inc.

83) Salvador Dali Museum, Inc.

84) Santa Fe College Foundation, Inc.

85) Sarasota County Tax Collector

86) Seafarer Exploration Corp

87) Sensys Gatso USA

88) SH Americas LLC

89) Sidecar Health, Inc.

90) Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Tampa Bay, Florida, Inc.

91) Southeast QSR, LLC

92) St. Petersburg Downtown Partnership

93) Stericycle, Inc.

94) StormQuant Inc.

95) Tampa Bay Chamber

96) Tampa Bay Water

97) Tampa Hillsborough Expressway Authority

98) The Academy at Glengary

99) The Association of Early Learning Coalitions

100) The Astronauts Memorial Foundation

101) The Building Industry Institute, Inc.

102) The Children's Trust

103) The Driscoll Firm, LLC

104) The Florida Holocaust Museum

105) Trapbag

106) University of South Florida Foundation

107) USF Student Government

108) Verizon

109) Vets2PM, LLC

110) Walmart Inc.

111) Who We Play For

112) Williams Communications, Inc.

113) WOFT

114) Women of Tomorrow Mentor and Scholarship Program, Inc.

115) Young Mens Christian Association of Greater St Petersburg Inc

116) Zuffa, LLC

KELLY MALLETTE

(Florida)
  • (305) 935-1866

  • 4000 Hollywood Blvd.Ste 677-SHollywoodFL33021

Clients:

RYAN MATTHEWS

(Florida)

JESS MCCARTY

(Florida)
  • (305) 979-7110

  • 111 NW 1St StreetSte 2800MiamiFL33128-1902

Clients:

GABRIELA NAVARRO

(Florida)
  • (305) 935-1866

  • 4000 Hollywood BoulevardSuite 677-SHollywoodFL33021

Clients:

JOSEPH SALZVERG

(Florida)
Clients:

JASON UNGER

(Florida)
Clients: