By Thom Little, Ph.D.
Next month (July 24-26), SLLF will host the 12th annual Conference of State Majority Leaders in Madison, Wisconsin. Having worked with legislative leaders for more than thirty years, I have concluded that the job of majority leader is perhaps the most challenging leadership position in state legislatures. For the most part, state legislative leaders who hold the same position have similar responsibilities. However, the role of majority leader is different. The responsibilities of the majority leader vary significantly from state to state and even between chambers in the same state. Here are some of the roles that many, if not all, majority leaders play.
Air Traffic Controller. Just as an air traffic controller oversees coordinating the departures and arrivals of airplanes at an airport, many majority leaders are in charge of coordinating the introduction, consideration and dispensation of hundreds and often thousands of bills introduced in their legislatures. In many states, it is the majority leader’s responsibility to determine or recommend to the party caucus if and how bills will be handled on the floor once they have been released from the standing committees.
Child Care Provider. Child care providers have two primary responsibilities when it comes to their charges: 1) teach them what they need to know to succeed, and 2) keep them safe, clean, and happy. These two responsibilities are quite similar to those of a majority leader who must continually monitor, persuade, and work with the members of her/his caucus, especially members in their first or second legislative terms.
Press Agent. In the world of social media, gotcha journalism and the paparazzi, anybody who is anybody has someone to handle the press. In the legislature, especially relative to the party caucus, that person is often the majority leader. At various times, the majority leader will be called upon to be the voice of the party caucus to the media, the governor, or the other chamber. Majority leaders learn quickly that they no longer speak just for themselves, but now often speak for the caucus or institution, and every word they say is closely noted.
Bridge Builders. Bridges are built to span a divide and join two distinct entities. In a similar manner, majority leaders are often asked to bridge differences between political entities and institutions. He or she is often asked to bridge the differences between the house and senate, the legislature and the Governor, the members of the caucus and the leaders and between the majority and minority parties. As bridge builders, majority leaders are constantly looking for issues and positions that can bring two competing sides together.
Referee. Like the referee in a basketball game, majority leaders enforce the rules and settle disputes. They try to maintain peace in increasingly fractious caucuses populated with independent, sometimes ideologically extreme, members. Being the referee can be particularly challenging in states where the majority caucus comprises an overwhelming or even supermajority as is currently the case in 63 of the 98 partisan chambers across the country. The challenge for the majority leader is to know when to allow a member to break from the party and when to demand party loyalty.
Lion Tamer. While majority leaders have always had to deal with factions, and in some instances factions that refuse to play by any established rules, in recent years the number and veracity of those legislators who need to be tamed (or at least monitored very closely) has gone up dramatically. Because of the one party dominance of most districts, most members often cast votes that make it hard for the majority leader to pull together coalitions necessary to govern.
Leader of the Band. Just like a band director must lead his band to make good music, the majority leader must coordinate the efforts of his or her caucus, preparing members for upcoming votes, identifying the abilities and making the most of the strengths of each member and keeping them all on the same page to make good policy together like the leader of the band conducts his or her band to make good music. Strike up the band!
Aide-de-Camp. In the military, every high-ranking officer has an aide-de-camp, someone who is his or her confidant and supports his or her efforts. This person is there to help the superior officer, to listen to his or her ideas and to offer input when asked. Majority leaders, especially those appointed by the presiding officer, may be asked to play a similar role, aiding the presiding officer in doing his or her job effectively.
Camp Counselor. Like a counselor at summer camp, the majority leader tries to bring harmony to very diverse caucuses. It is hard to sing Kumbaya with a bunch of often unruly men and women with their own ideas, values and personalities, who all happen to be elected legislators and who happen to sit in your political party! Too often, members want to change the words of the song, sing to a different tune or sing completely off key.
Bullseye. Okay, being a bullseye is not a real job, but it is part of the job of a majority leader. Taking shots for the members and the leaders is what majority leaders do. It’s one indelible part of the job. When members do not want to vote on a bad or ineffective (but politically popular) piece of legislation, it is the majority leader who often takes the blame for keeping it off the floor. When a legislator makes an inaccurate or inappropriate statement to the press it is usually the majority leader that comes to his or her defense.
If you are a majority leader, please plan to join your colleagues in Madison, Wisconsin, on July 24-26, to share experiences, address challenges and collaborate on solutions.
You can register here!
