OnSight Public Affairs
OnSight Public Affairs is a left-of-center public affairs firm that provides communications, political consulting, and governmental affairs services to Democratic candidates, left-of-center ballot initiatives, and left-leaning advocacy groups in Colorado. The firm has supported campaigns and issues including increased education funding, independent redistricting, and LGBT anti-discrimination protections through ballot measures. Its work has benefited clients such as U.S. Senator and former Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper (D), former U.S. Senator Mark Udall (D-CO), and environmental organizations including Conservation Colorado and the Center for Western Priorities. 1 2
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The firm was founded by Mike Melanson and Ben Davis, Democratic political operatives who had previously worked on the campaigns of Senator Udall and Governor Hickenlooper. 3
Background
OnSight Public Affairs was founded in 2009 by political consultants Mike Melanson and Ben Davis, who had worked on Democratic campaigns in Colorado, including those of then-Senator Mark Udall (D-CO) and then-Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper (D). The pair formed the firm immediately following Senator Udall’s 2008 campaign. 4
Early clients of the firm included Hickenlooper’s 2010 gubernatorial campaign, as well as projects for the US Pro Challenge and the Denver Post Community Foundation. In 2013, the firm added Curtis Hubbard, previously the page editor at the Denver Post, as a partner to grow the firm’s media relations and political activity. 4
Activities
OnSight provides services such as branding, direct mail, social media oversight, video production, and polling tailored to political and advocacy campaigns. The firm also advertises government affairs and lobbying services. Listed clients of the firm include the Colorado Hospital Association, the Colorado Licensed Beverage Association, the Center for Western Priorities, the Colorado Brewers Guild, Coloradans for Civil Justice, the Wilderness Society, Google, the Colorado Department of Natural Resources, Vail Resorts, and Snowsports Industries of America. 1
OnSight has consulted for multiple Democratic candidates and left-wing ballot measures in Colorado. In addition to Hickenlooper’s gubernatorial campaigns, the firm worked for U.S. Rep. Ed Perlmutter (D-CO), Denver Mayor Michael Hancock (D), and Donna Lynne‘s 2018 gubernatorial bid. It also supported Elise Jones’ Boulder County commissioner campaign and David Schechter’s Jackson, Wyoming, town council race. 5 1
Ballot initiatives the firm has worked on have included Coloradans for Prosperity/Yes on Proposition CC, Colorado Coming Together/Yes on Amendment B, Colorado Commits to Kids/Yes on Amendment 66, Fair Maps Colorado/Yes on Amendments Y & Z, and Yes on Proposition DD (Sports Betting). 1
People
Mike Melanson is the founding senior partner at OnSight, directing strategy and polling operations. He managed Mark Udall‘s 2008 Senate campaign, John Hickenlooper‘s 2010 and 2014 gubernatorial races, and the campaign for Amendment 35 in 2006, which raised tobacco taxes to fund children’s health programs. 3
Ben Davis, the other founding partner, handled communications and creative strategy for the firm and also had previously worked on Udall’s and Hickenlooper’s campaigns. Davis left the firm in 2017 to work for the Wend Collective and, as of 2025, was the director and founder of Civic (Re)Solve. 3
Curtis Hubbard joined the firm as a partner in 2013 following his tenure as editorial page editor at the Denver Post, where he covered state politics for over two decades. 4