Adjusting to a Gold Dome without Representative Stephanie Stuckey Benfield is going to take some getting used to.
Since 1998, she has sustained a vigor rarely seen in the Georgia Legislature. Her energy is infectious and her genuine drive to help the people of Georgia is inspiring.
I know this first-hand because I was fortunate enough to spend the 2011 session working as Stephanie’s Chief of Staff.
I got to know Stephanie in the two years preceding during my work as Elena Parent’s campaign manager. Stephanie was in charge of recruiting for the GA House Democratic Caucus, and Elena was her star recruit. So, Stephanie and I talked a lot in 2009 and even more as Elena’s race heated up in 2010.
Not long after Elena was elected, Stephanie asked me to come work for her during the 2011 Session, and we agreed that I would split my time between she and Elena. This arrangement worked out great.
I had a blast working for Stephanie! She was a fantastic boss and truly an inspiration.
Obviously, there’s a lot of ego in politics, but it was different with Stephanie. There were two specific passion pieces of Legislation she worked on during that session, where she was the main driver behind the work. But she knew in a Republican-dominated House, she could not be the lead name on the bills, if she wanted them to have any chance of success.
But she didn’t care about the credit. She only cared about the end result.
If she needed to be the fifth signer on a bill with four Republicans ahead of her, so the legislation would move, she was totally fine with that. Rare indeed.
Stephanie is everything you want in a Representative, in a boss and in a friend.
I will always treasure my time working with her, and I’m proud to call her my friend.
Stephanie, we all wish you luck at GreenLaw, and you know that whenever you want your name back on a ballot we will all be there to support you.