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

Rumors of his potential firing have spread among industry leaders, lobbyists, and legislative staffers since at least late 2025. —Lizzy Lawrence, STAT, 8 May 2026

Meanwhile, other Democrats in this race have either accepted thousands of corporate PAC and lobbyist money or have spent millions of dollars to buy this seat. —Lucas Robinson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 May 2026

Still, California Republicans and energy industry lobbyists say policymakers have spent years putting the state in a bad spot through excessive regulations, gas taxes and the state’s mandate for a blend of gasoline that is separate from the rest of the country. —Sacbee.com, 6 May 2026

Anduril is up against the small but deeply entrenched world of defense primes, some of whose lobbyists have been working the Hill longer than Schimpf’s been alive. —Allie Garfinkle, Fortune, 6 May 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1842, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for lobbyist

• hobbyist