Legislative Leaders

Legislative Leaders were first described by Burns (1978), as one of his five types of transactional leaders.  The other four leadership styles include group leaders, party leaders, executive leaders, and opinion leaders.

Although he paints a rather unflattering picture of the legislative branch of governments, the examples for his model are consistent with the realities of the system.  Legislative leaders will engage in bargaining, reciprocal exchanges, and political payoffs.  These are the transactions of the legislative leader.

One example of the transactional nature of legislative leaders includes their relationships with Political Action Committees.  These organizations represent ways that employees of companies can raise money to support legislators.  They are also viewed by some as a political payoff mechanism.  In exchange for a PAC's support, the legislator may take a stronger position on potential laws that may adversely affect the employee's company.