Tony Essalih

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Tony Essalih

( Texas,  )

Cornerstone Government Affairs

Subjects: All Subjects

Introduction

Former chief of staff for House Appropriations Cardinal

Leads both federal and state clients from the firm's Houston office

Serves on advisory and steering committees for Texas delegation members

Client List  Biography 
Clients

1) a16z

2) Advanced Power Alliance

3) Air Liquide

4) BayMark Health Services

5) Bristow Group

6) Chick-fil-A, Inc.

7) Community Choice Financial OpCo, LLC

8) Community Health Choice

9) Endeavors

10) Flix North America Inc.

11) Fort Bend Chamber of Commerce

12) Garner Environmental Services, Inc.

13) Hamilton Health Box Inc.

14) Harris Health System

15) Hewlett-Packard Enterprise Company

16) Houston Firefighters Relief and Retirement Fund

17) Hunt Companies, Inc.

18) Luminant Generation Company LLC

19) Motorola Solutions, Inc.

20) Outfront Media Inc.

21) Pagewood

22) Palo Alto Networks

23) Parsons Corporation

24) PrizePicks

25) QuikTrip Corporation

26) Rice University

27) RSM LLP

28) Samsara Inc.

29) San Jacinto River Authority

30) Speedy Stop Food Stores LLC

31) Texas Medical Center

32) Texas Pacific Land Corporation

33) Texas Poultry Federation

34) Texas Woman's University Foundation

35) TXU Energy Retail Company LLC

36) Vaulted Deep

37) Vistra Corp.

38) Vistra Corporate Services Company

39) Wellpath Recovery Solutions, LLC

Biography

Tony Essalih joined Cornerstone in 2011 as a co-lead of the firm's flagship Texas office in Houston. He spent 12 years on Capitol Hill and came to Cornerstone from the office of Congressman John Culberson (R-Houston). Tony worked for Congressman Culberson for 10 years, the last five as his chief of staff. Prior to becoming chief of staff, Tony served in a variety of capacities including legislative assistant, legislative director, communications director, and deputy chief of staff. He spent eight years in Washington, D.C. before relocating to Houston in 2007.

As chief of staff, Tony was responsible for guiding the day-to-day operations of the Congressman's Washington and Houston offices, and oversaw a 15-member staff under a fixed budget. Outside of the office, he served as the principal liaison to the Congressman's campaign committee and provided strategic counsel and advice related to his re-election efforts. Tony's areas of policy expertise include transportation, energy, budget and appropriations. Tony also led outreach efforts and served as an emissary on behalf of the Congressman with state lawmakers in Austin and local elected officials in Houston.

Prior to Culberson's election in 2001, Tony worked as a legislative assistant for Congressman Culberson's predecessor, former House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Bill Archer. Tony's began his tenure on Capitol Hill with former House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings.

Tony has advised and assisted numerous local, state, and federal campaigns. He serves on the board of the National InterFaith Foundation, the Advisory Board for the Houston Technology Center, spent two years on the Board of the Spring Branch Medical Center and was a member of Houston Mayor Annise Parker's transition team in 2010.

Tony was born and raised in Fredericksburg, VA and received his B.A. in Political Science from Mary Washington College. He was a member of Mary Washington's NCAA semifinalist men's soccer team. He lives in Houston and has two angelic daughters, Grace and Libby.

Last Updated: January 06, 2026