By: Thom Little, Ph.D.
As many of you know, each summer for more than two decades, the State Legislative Leaders Foundation has sponsored The Emerging Legislative Leaders (ELLP) Program at the University of Virginia Darden School. We invite state legislative leaders (presiding officers and minority leaders) from across the nation to nominate rising stars from their freshman and sophomore classes to apply to the program. This year, 113 of the nominees completed applications for the fifty slots.
After my colleagues and I read these applications, it occurred to me that applicant responses to our questions offered a unique insight into the thoughts, interests and challenges of future legislative leaders that others might find interesting. While the applications are confidential, it’s valuable to share some trends in their short term and long term goals, the challenges they face, and leadership traits.
Legislative Goals: Not surprisingly, most of the short term goals identified revolved around the legislative institution. The most common response was a desire to master the formal and informal rules that govern the legislative process from new members unprepared for their complexity. Many referred to the “firehose” effect as they struggled to learn the process while participating in it. Second was a desire to increase their impact within their party’s caucus and among its members. A significant number of respondents expressed interest in providing tangible results for their legislative district and constituents.
When talking about long term goals, a large number of applicants expressed a desire to increase their influence within the legislature and on statewide policy to improve the lives of not just their constituents, but of all the state’s population. Finally, many of these rising stars expressed a desire to lead and mentor future generations of legislators, especially those typically underrepresented in the process.
Political and Personal Challenges: Reflecting the current political climate, the most common challenge noted by program applicants was overcoming the growing partisan and ideological polarization. Minority party members raised concerns about partisanship limiting their influence, while members of both parties lamented the challenges of reaching across ideological divides within their own caucuses. Beyond polarization, other applicants noted two conflicts they are learning to navigate. First, several noted the challenge of finding balance between what is good for the state and what is good for their district and constituents. Others (especially those in part-time or citizen legislatures) raised concerns about finding balance between their legislative jobs, their professional lives, and their familial obligations.
Leadership Traits: Asked to identify a leadership trait they possessed, future leaders noted a range of positive attributes. Almost half of the applicants mentioned their ability to listen- listen to constituents, listen to colleagues and listen to staff, before making decisions. Other legislators, especially those in partisan or ethnic minorities, noted their resilience and persistence, an ability to work to overcome challenges before them. A third quality noted by applicants was the ability to work across ideological and partisan lines to build effective coalitions. Finally, a significant number of these future leaders suggested that empathy, the ability to see things from the perspective of others, was a key leadership trait in their quiver of leadership arrows.
Based on these responses, I would say that the future of our state legislatures is in thoughtful, dedicated and effective hands!
