Ashley Harris arrived in Washington D.C. at 21 years old with a PR degree and no room for fear. She was scheduling and managing the office of a congressman, surrounded by people who had been doing this for decades, and she just decided her words carried weight. That conviction has followed her across every room she has walked into since.
Now she is the VP of Marketing and Communications at Ozarks Electric Cooperative and OzarksGo, a member of the Chamber Fayetteville board, and a government relations advocate who regularly walks into the offices of senators and congresspeople to make the case for the 90,000-plus members her cooperative serves. She started in a car dealership finance office. She spent years at Mitchell Communications Group doing PR for Walmart, Sam's Club, and Tyson Foods. She worked a lobbying firm where the three-martini lunch was very much a real thing. Every single stop, she says, led her here. In this episode, Angela sits down with Ashley to talk about the career that keeps circling back to the same truth. In this episode, we get into:
- What it felt like to arrive on Capitol Hill at 21 and decide that her voice belonged in that room
- The lobbying world of the 1990s, raising the largest amount of presidential campaign money ever for a small firm, and changing into a formal gown in a bathroom after 26 hours straight
- Why advocating with heart and story is more powerful than advocating with facts and figures
- How to call your congressman's office, make an appointment, and go talk about the thing you care about
- What nine years at an 80-year-old electric cooperative has taught her about legacy, service, and real-world impact
Ashley talks about the shift from paid lobbyist to government relations advocate and why the difference in confidence is enormous. When she walks into a Senate office now, she is not there for a client. She is there for the line workers who spent seven days in the field after the last major tornado, for the rural member on an oxygen tank who loses power during a storm, for the cooperative that cannot access FEMA funding the way investor-owned utilities can. Those stories, she says, are what move legislators. Facts and figures are the floor. The story is what gets someone to stand on the Senate floor and champion a bill.
She also makes a point that is worth writing down. Her mentor in PR told her: you can be a great storyteller, but you have to be a great story knower. Across marketing, public relations, civic advocacy, and leadership, the people who show up knowing the real story are the ones who change things.
The Women of All Generations event is June 16, 2026, 3 to 6 PM at the Fayetteville Town Center. Grab your tickets at fayettevillear.com/woag.
Mentioned in this episode:
- Ozarks Electric Cooperative: ozarksecc.com
- OzarksGo: ozarksgo.net
- Mitchell Communications Group, Fayetteville AR
- University of Arkansas, Fayetteville (Ashley's alma mater)
- Chamber Fayetteville: fayettevillear.com
- Senator James Langford (Oklahoma) and FEMA cooperative reform advocacy
- Women of All Generations event: fayettevillear.com/woag
Connect with Ashley:
- Ozarks Electric: ozarksecc.com
- OzarksGo: ozarksgo.net
- LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/ashleywhisenhuntharris
- Chamber Fayetteville: fayettevillear.com
Mentioned in this episode:
Women of All Generations | June 16, 2026
The Women of All Generations event is almost here. Join us June 16, 2026 from 3 to 6 PM at the Fayetteville Town Center for an afternoon of real conversation, connection, and celebration. Tickets and sponsorships are available now. You belong in that room. Grab your spot at fayettevillear.com/woag.
