Abstract
This paper develops a network approach to lobbying. We posit that the building blocks of the lobbying game are relationships, with lobbyists and legislators benefitting from bonds based on familiarity and mutual interest. Using data on contributions from lobbyists to legislators in the 2006 electoral cycle, we identify key dimensions of this network. We find that legislators are more likely to receive donations from the same lobbyists if they are from the same party (in the Senate), state, or committee; if they are both vulnerable in the next election; and the number of common donors increases the more agreement there is in the voting record of a pair of legislators.
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