Former California Congressman Tony Coelho, who was Democratic Whip, and Ron Packard, a Republican who chaired the appropriations committee on energy and water, have formed Vectis Strategies with offices in Los Angeles, Sacramento, San Diego and Washington.

Vectis, which is the Latin word for “leverage,” launches with practice areas of privacy/cybersecurity, environmental initiatives, municipal infrastructure/transportation and media relations.

The firm also includes Peter Kelly, former California Democratic party chairman, and David Herbst, executive VP of Mercury Air Group and former senior VP at MWW Group.   

In announcing the formation of Vectis, Coelho said though the firm’s principals can be partisan and “throw elbows” they also “know when and how to compromise and extend the handshake that gets the job done.”