Donna Lucas to Lead CalChamber Board of Directors for Remainder of 2026

For Immediate Release
Contact: John Myers
[email protected] | [email protected]

Interim Appointment Follows Departure of Former Board Chair Maryam Brown

(April 24, 2026) Sacramento, CA - Public affairs executive Donna Lucas will serve as chair of the California Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, after being selected today to fill a vacancy for the remainder of the year.

Lucas succeeds Maryam S. Brown, who stepped down earlier this month after a 15-month term leading the organization's governing body, having accepted an offer to become President and Chief Operating Officer of Indiana Michigan Power. Brown was formerly President and Chief Executive Officer of the Southern California Gas Company.

Lucas, one of California's most experienced and prominent public affairs professionals, previously served as Chair of CalChamber's Board of Directors in 2021 and has been a board member since 2012. She is Chief Executive Officer and Founder of Lucas Public Affairs, a Sacramento-based firm she founded in 2006, and a member of Five Star Bank's Board of Directors.

The CalChamber Board of Directors will choose a new chair when the current term, now filled by Lucas, expires at the end of December.

"I am honored to be selected to serve in this role at such a pivotal moment for strengthening California's business climate and making our state an even better place for businesses to succeed and communities to prosper," said Lucas.

Lucas served in the administrations of former Govs. George Deukmejian and Arnold Schwarzenegger and was later chief of staff for former First Lady Maria Shriver. Before founding her eponymous public affairs firm, Lucas was the CEO of Nelson Communications. She also served for many years as a board member of the nonpartisan Public Policy Institute of California, including a stint as chair of the organization's board, and is a former chair of the College Futures Foundation.

Lucas has been instrumental in creating CalChamber's Women's Leadership Council and is a founding member of She Shares, a unique conversation series featuring trailblazing women leaders who have made a lasting impact in California and beyond.