South Florida-based public affairs firm MDW Communications walked out of the 2026 American Association of Political Consultants national conference with four Pollie Awards.
The wins, which included three Golds for direct mail and digital work tied to high-profile Florida races, were announced at the March 26-27 conference on Amelia Island. The AAPC’s Gold Pollie Award is the industry’s highest honor bestowed upon public affairs and political consultants at the national and international level.
MDW Partners Landon St. Gordon and Martin Page accounted for three of the honors on the direct mail side. The firm picked up Gold for Best Municipal Direct Mail for “Democrats Trust Rolando Escalona,” supporting Rolando Escalona’s successful 2025 Miami District 3 City Commission campaign.
Another Gold came in the bilingual and foreign-language direct mail category for “Juggling Emilio,” a Spanish-language contrast mailer used in the 2025 Miami mayoral race that culminated in Eileen Higgins’ historic win in the Miami mayoral contest.
The team also earned Bronze for Best Independent Expenditure Mayoral Direct Mail for “Part Time Mayor Emilio.”
On the digital side, MDW Director of Web Development Aaron Monse secured a Gold Pollie for Best Mayoral Website for his work on Tiffany Moore Russell’s Orange County mayoral campaign. The award marks Monse’s fifth Pollie overall and his second national win for best mayoral site, following a 2021 victory for work on Daniella Levine Cava’s Miami-Dade mayoral campaign.
“2025 was a major year for MDW — helping elect the first Democratic Mayor of Miami in over three decades. It’s such an honor for our team’s hard work and creativity to be recognized on a national stage,” MDW Senior Partner Michael Worley said.
