evidence: Does it really matter whether former political advisors get elected to public office? Former advisors are likely to have more skills than other newly elected legislators, allowing them to hit the ground running when it comes to performing the duties of their office. In this sense, a voter might see electing a former advisor as the smart choice, since they are likely to be more effective than candidates without political experience. Are former advisors likely to use these skills and networks to further their constituents’ interests, however? Indeed, we have good reason to think that former political advisers bring more than their expertise in the process of politics, but may even approach their responsibilities differently in the first instance. A central question each representative must confront is to whom they should be responsive. One difference between former advisors and those with other types of pre-legislative experience might be their views on the nature of mass-elite linkages in representative style ( [...] The phenomenon of former advisors becoming elected officials also informs the personalization of politics. Personalization refers to a "