POLITICO announces new policy reporters and authors of Influence and Morning Trade

Jacob Wendler (via LinkedIn)

Announcement from Influence Editor Annie Yu, Trade Editor Emily Cadei, Senior Managing Editor Clea Benson, and Senior Executive Editor, North America, Alex Burns:

Hello all -

We’re delighted to announce two hires who will deepen our reporting strength on federal policy teams central to our coverage of power, influence and the global economy.

Jacob Wendler has joined the Influence team as a reporter and lead author of the daily newsletter. And Oliver Ward will join the Trade team on June 9 as lead author of Morning Trade. Together, they bring sharp reporting instincts and unflagging energy to these crucial beats.

Jacob, who will be moving over after a star turn on the breaking news team, has shown impressive reporting chops in every step of his journey at POLITICO. He recently played a key role in our cross-team scoops on the timing of Trump’s big AI executive order and a new Pentagon task force. In just a few weeks of pinch hitting on the Influence team, he’s delivered exclusive reporting on Democrats ditching Eric Swalwell’s startup post-sexual assault allegations, transportation donors boosting Sean Duffy’s son-in-law, key K Street moves and more.

Jacob started at POLITICO as an intern in June 2025 before joining the breaking news team full-time in November. He previously interned for Bloomberg News and Forbes magazine. As a student editor-in-chief, he led The Daily Northwestern to be named Daily Newspaper of the Year by the College Media Association. He’s also a POLITICO Journalism Institute alum.

And Oliver will bring a deep background in trade and economic coverage to his new role at POLITICO. He joins us from Agri-Pulse, where he has been serving as trade editor, delivering scoops on Trump’s tariffs, trade pacts and moves on food aid programs. Prior to that, he worked as a reporter at Inside U.S. Trade and wrote on trade and economics at the Peterson Institute for Economics.

Oliver — a native of the UK — moved to the U.S. in 2018 after several years in Argentina and Spain. He studied history and sociology at the University of Leeds and received a masters in journalism and digital storytelling at American University. He lives in Washington with his wife and daughter and enjoys watching soccer — particularly Leeds United.

Please join us in congratulating Jacob and Oliver.