Bruce Lesley

Bruce Lesley is president of First Focus on Children and its partner organization First Focus Campaign for Children, bipartisan advocacy organizations dedicated to making children a priority in federal, state, and international policy. He has led both organizations since 2006 and 2009, respectively, building them into recognized national voices on child health, education, early childhood, economic security, budget and tax policy, immigration, children’s rights, and more recently, international child policy.

Bruce writes the Kids Can't Wait Substack, where he publishes in-depth analysis on federal policy and its impact on children, and is launching a companion podcast of the same name.

Prior to leading First Focus on Children, Bruce spent more than a dozen years on Capitol Hill. In the Senate, he worked for Senators Jeff Bingaman (NM) and Bob Graham (FL) on the Senate Finance and Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committees, and then on the Senate Special Committee on Aging as its staff director. He also worked in the House for Representatives Diana DeGette (CO) and Ronald Coleman (TX) on the House Energy and Commerce and Appropriations Committees, respectively.

In the Washington, D.C. area, Bruce also served as head of health and human services policy for the Texas Office of State-Federal Relations under Governor Ann Richards, and as Director of Congressional Relations for the Children's Hospital Association.

Earlier in his career, Bruce worked in El Paso, Texas, as policy director for University Medical Center, executive assistant to El Paso County Judge Pat F. O’Rourke, and district director for State Representative Mary Polk.

Bruce holds a Bachelor's Degree in Government and Politics from the University of Maryland Global Campus and a Master's Degree in Political Psychology from Arizona State University.