Meet the Rittenhouse Team!

Aubrey Montgomery - Principal and President

Aubrey Montgomery founded Rittenhouse Political Partners, a Pennsylvania-based fundraising firm, in 2013 after more than a decade spent raising millions of dollars in more than a dozen states.

Aubrey is regarded as one of top fundraising professionals in the country, not only for her ability to create and execute finance plans, but also for her ability to coach candidates and manage finance staff.

Neil Deegan - Managing Principal

Neil Deegan, a skilled political and non-profit leader with nearly two decades of experience, joined the firm’s team of fundraising professionals as managing principal in 2016.

Neil joined Rittenhouse Political Partners from Enroll America, a non-profit organization focused on connecting the uninsured with health coverage, where he served as the Pennsylvania state director. 

Catherine McParland - Principal

Catherine McParland, among Pennsylvania’s most experienced political fundraisers, joined the Rittenhouse team in July 2024 as our newest Principal.

Cat, who founded her own fundraising firm in 2022, has worked with the campaigns of now-Governor Josh Shapiro, former Senator Bob Casey, Judge Timika Lane, Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta’s US Senate campaign, and served as the Finance Director of the PA Democratic Party during the critical 2020 election year.

With experience at the local, statewide, and federal levels, Cat has raised millions of dollars for incumbents as well as first time candidates.

Catherine lives in Philadelphia with her husband, son, and their tuxedo cat Ellie.

Natalie Bilansky - Senior Project Manager

Natalie was raised and shaped by loved ones who were civically engaged across the political spectrum, from chairing Party Committees to working in elected officials' offices, to being community and cause activists and union organizers. Her start in professional politics came as a Finance Assistant on the 2019 Kenney mayoral re-election campaign. From there, she spent time at Keystone Political Advising, managing various races in the Philadelphia area.

During the 2020 election, Natalie worked in DC as a Political Client Finance Associate for the progressive and Democratic media buying firm Sage Media Planning and Placement, Inc. There, she oversaw clients’ cash on hand, payment transactions, and reconciled multi-million dollar accounts. She also liaised with the respective campaigns and creative agencies and assisted the Finance and Operations Directors with internal business operations.

When the opportunity arose to return to Philadelphia-based fundraising, Natalie embarked on her second tour with Keystone Political Advising. She managed call time programs, built and executed fundraising events, collaborated on financial planning and strategy, and managed client accounts and compliance databases for municipal, state, federal, and judicial campaigns. Natalie also ran the consulting firm's internal business operations and internship program.

Natalie lives in Fairmount with her dog Cedric – you will find them at a local coffee shop or walking on the Schuylkill River Trail. In her spare time, Natalie loves to travel, attend sporting events, try new restaurants, and volunteer in the community.

Emilie Ahr - Project Manager

Emilie joined Rittenhouse as a fellow in 2022, and joined the firm full time as a project assistant in June 2023, Holding a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the University of Pittsburgh, where she studied Marketing and Political Science, Emilie's passion lies in merging these fields to create meaningful impact on her community.

Emilie has garnered valuable experience through her internships on notable campaigns, including Mayor Ed Gainey, Steve Irwin for Congress, Antonetta Stancu for DA, and the Black Women for Better Education PAC's slate for PPS School Board. During her time at Pitt, she furthered her marketing prowess and political acumen through achievements such as serving as President of the American Marketing Association, leading a student run marketing consultation firm, studying art history abroad in Paris, and graduating Summa Cum Laude.

Born and raised in Doylestown, PA, Emilie holds a deep appreciation for her creative outlets, and in her free time enjoys cooking and baking, skiing, and creating art through various mediums.

Zoey Benson - Project Manager

Zoey joined Rittenhouse Political Partners as a project assistant in February 2023. 

Raised in Northwest Arkansas, Zoey moved to Pennsylvania as a teenager and studied Political Science at the University of Pittsburgh. While in Pittsburgh, Zoey worked in the office of Senator Bob Casey, then-State Representative Austin Davis, and was a Campaign Fellow on Mayor Ed Gainey’s campaign. 

Zoey has also worked as a social worker and as a policy researcher. 

In her free time, Zoey loves to travel, go camping, play board games, collect vinyl records, and try as much new food as possible.

Caroline Shelton - Project Assistant

Caroline Shelton joined Rittenhouse Political Partners in 2023 after serving on the finance team for former Councilmember Derek Green’s mayoral campaign.

A Georgia native, Caroline got her start in politics working on Carolyn Bourdeaux’s campaign in 2020. She was a part of a successful field team that flipped Georgia’s 7th district blue and elected the first woman to that seat. Caroline then joined Raphael Warnock’s re-election team in 2022, working with his digital and social media teams.

In her spare time, Caroline is a photographer and yoga enthusiast and loves finding new coffee shops and record stores.

Caroline attended McGill University, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and minors in Philosophy and Art History.

Elizabeth Montgomery - Administrative Coordinator

Elizabeth was born and raised in the South Texas border town of Mercedes. She attended Yale University on scholarship, graduating in three years with undergraduate degrees in Sociology and Psychology.

After a successful 25 year career in sales, Elizabeth joined Rittenhouse Political Partners in 2015 as our administrative coordinator.

Elizabeth, or “Ms. E” as she is known here, is mother to Aubrey, Devon, Katelynn and Owen Montgomery, and grandmother to Shireen Pasha. When not at work, Ms. E loves to travel (to the beach or Europe), is a voracious reader and an avid Game of Thrones fan. She enjoys hiking, calligraphy, adult coloring books, visiting museums and historical homes.  Ms. E lives in the Philadelphia suburbs.