lobbyist

noun

lob·​by·​ist ˈlä-bē-ist 

plural lobbyists

: one who conducts activities aimed at influencing or swaying public officials and especially members of a legislative body on legislation : a person engaged in lobbying public officials

The new rule says that if you were a registered lobbyist in the past two years, you can't work for the administration on any issue you touched. After you leave government, you can't lobby the administration at all.

—Jacob Weisberg

Because so many lobbyists have past experience on Capitol Hill, they usually have personal ties both to members of congress and to their key staffers, who vet and prioritize the earmark requests.

—Ken Silverstein

Examples of lobbyist in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Meanwhile, Bovo served as an in-house lobbyist for Miami Children’s, contributing to the successful collaboration that secured substantial funding for both hospitals. —Verónica Egui Brito, Miami Herald, 6 Feb. 2025

Tom served as the Head Savage Planning Commissioner, head of the Hospital Workers Credit Union, and as a lobbyist at the St. Paul Capital. —Contributed Content, Twin Cities, 6 Feb. 2025

Charged alongside him is McClain, a former lobbyist who was Madigan’s right-hand man. —Ray Long, Chicago Tribune, 3 Feb. 2025

Nick Ponder, a lobbyist for the league, told Axios the new bill goes too far in reducing minimum lot sizes and didn't make any substantive changes except the military provision. —Jeremy Duda, Axios, 31 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1842, in the meaning defined above