Jennifer Poersch Registers as UAE Foreign Agent
The Washington lobbyist, whose husband leads a Senate Democratic super PAC, was retained to represent the United Arab Emirates Embassy.
Updated on Nov. 8, 2026 in International Relations
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Jennifer Poersch, a partner at the Washington lobbying firm Guidepost Strategies, registered under the Foreign Agents Registration Act on Oct. 30 to represent the United Arab Emirates Embassy. The agreement provides for an initial $100,000 payment followed by $100,000 a month beginning Nov. 1.
Why it matters
Foreign agent registrations give the public a record of paid work on behalf of foreign governments seeking influence in Washington. Her husband, J.B. Poersch, is president of Senate Majority PAC, which spends heavily to elect Senate Democrats.
The FARA filing sets out a $100,000 initial payment followed by $100,000 monthly payments to Guidepost Strategies beginning Nov. 1. The filing does not describe the specific policy objectives the firm is pursuing for the embassy.
The players
Jennifer Poersch
Jennifer Poersch is a partner at Guidepost Strategies, a Washington lobbying firm, and registered as a foreign agent for the United Arab Emirates Embassy.
J.B. Poersch
J.B. Poersch is a longtime Democratic strategist who previously ran the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and now leads Senate Majority PAC.
Chuck Schumer
Chuck Schumer is the Senate Democratic leader from New York and a longtime figure in the party's Senate campaign operations.
Senate Majority PAC
Senate Majority PAC is a Democratic super PAC that raises and spends hundreds of millions of dollars each election cycle to support Senate Democrats.
The details
Guidepost Strategies was retained through Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld, the firm already representing the UAE Embassy. The registration came as J.B. Poersch's Senate Majority PAC celebrated Democratic gains, with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer embracing him on election night.
Timeline
2004-11: J.B. Poersch ran the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, including while Schumer chaired it.
2017: Schumer handpicked J.B. Poersch to lead Senate Majority PAC.
Oct. 30: Jennifer Poersch registered as a foreign agent for the UAE Embassy.
Nov. 1: Monthly $100,000 payments to Guidepost are scheduled to begin.
This week: Schumer bear-hugged J.B. Poersch after Democrats' Senate victory.
Political Context
Foreign agent registrations under FARA require lobbyists to publicly disclose work done for foreign governments, a regime designed to make foreign influence visible to the public. Critics of foreign lobbying argue that such disclosures are often the only public window into how foreign governments cultivate relationships in Washington.
Voters and donors tracking political spending can see that a close associate of a major Senate Democratic super PAC is now paid to represent a foreign government. The registration is publicly searchable under FARA, letting readers check the filing directly.
The takeaway
Foreign agent filings are a useful check on who is being paid to influence U.S. policy, and readers can review the underlying registrations themselves. The connection between a lobbyist and a party-aligned super PAC is worth watching as those relationships evolve.
Further reading
For more on how foreign governments engage Washington, explore International Relations coverage.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Sludge.
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