The Role of Legislative Assistants in Louisiana Advocacy
To communicate well with legislators, it is important to know about the staff that supports them. Why? Because your advocacy efforts will most likely go through staff to reach the legislator.
Each Louisiana legislator has one legislative assistant who supports them. If a legislator chairs a committee, there may also be an assistant for that committee. Legislative assistants schedule appointments, monitor legislation, and track issues affecting the legislator’s district. Most importantly, legislative assistants are the main link (liaison) between legislators and constituents, other policymakers, the media, and other groups.
When you contact your legislator’s office, you will usually speak with the legislative assistant. Treat them with the same respect you would the legislator. They help manage communication and can decide if and when you get to speak with the legislator.
Building relationships with legislative assistants is a very important part of being an effective advocate. See How To Build Key Relationships for more information.