Press Herald: Bobby Charles spent years as a D.C. lobbyist. Who were his clients?

By Rachel Olm – Sept 12

• Charles is mounting an underdog campaign against Democrat Hannah Pingree, whom a CNN poll found this week has a 52% to 39% lead.
• While both Pingree and Bennett have been involved in Maine politics for years, Charles is a newcomer to campaigns who built his career in Washington, D.C. In addition to working in the federal government and serving as an assistant U.S. secretary of state in the George W. Bush administration, Charles founded a consulting firm, the Charles Group, in 1999.
• In order to gain insight into the relationships he forged during his long career in D.C., the Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram reviewed close to 600 lobbying reports filed by the Charles Group between 2000 and 2026. The review found a wide array of work across industries, including for some groups that are similar to ones that could have business in Augusta.
  
  
• Charles’ campaign said he was not available this week for an interview on his work with the Charles Group, including its lobbying efforts — which have been the target of attacks lately in his run for governor. Just this week, Charles’ sister, Anita Charles, criticized her brother as an out-of-touch lobbyist in an op-ed saying she plans to vote for Pingree.
  
  
• To determine which clients gave the firm the most lobbying business, the Press Herald analyzed filings that included at least $5,000 in reported income per quarter.
• The top client was the Association of Mature American Citizens, an advocacy group that bills itself as a conservative alternative to AARP.
  
  
• The firm collected more than $400,000 from AMAC between 2011 and 2019, advocating for issues including healthcare and Social Security legislation and reforms. Although no lobbying reports have been filed since 2019, Charles continues to work for the association, where he serves as a national spokesperson.

Maine Beacon: Longtime lobbyist Bobby Charles rails against lobbyists, pledges to fight practices his clients engaged in

By Channa Steinmetz – August 31, 2026

• Republican gubernatorial nominee Bobby Charles recently told WGAN that giving money as a lobbyist means “you’re essentially believing that you’re going to buy a favor.”

• But Charles, who has made government fraud and waste allegations a centerpiece of his own campaign for governor, lobbied for years for companies that defrauded or overbilled the federal government, bribed officials, and even engaged in election fraud.

• Charles has worked for more than a decade lobbying for companies that overcharged taxpayers, held lucrative no-bid contracts or later became involved in federal fraud and bribery cases, with his company receiving at least $512,000 from such clients, including major defense contractors.

• Charles spent 16 of the 17 years between 2000 and 2016 as a registered lobbyist and founded The Charles Group, a lobbying firm he still leads. The firm reported lobbying as recently as the first quarter of 2026, after Charles had launched his campaign for governor.

• One such client was MZM Inc., which paid Charles’ firm to lobby in 2005. MZM had received more than $150 million from the Defense Department under a no-bid contract worth up to $250 million — the same type of contract Charles now promises to eliminate in Maine.

• The company’s founder and CEO, Mitchell Wade, later pleaded guilty to bribing then-Rep. Randy “Duke” Cunningham in exchange for government business. MZM and Wade also agreed to pay a $1 million penalty over illegal straw political contributions.

• Charles’ firm also received at least $276,000 lobbying for Bell Helicopter and its parent company Textron between 2000 and 2007. Bell later paid more than $16.5 million to resolve claims involving overbilling of the Defense Department.

• In 2026, the Charles Group remains an active lobbying firm. Its website listed Charles as its “president and managing member” in April, roughly a year after he announced his campaign for governor.