George Landrith: Forever a Freedom Fighter

As America’s Independence Day approaches, let’s treasure those that let freedom ring.

Commitment to conservative causes, for some, are a lifetime calling.

In the 1980s, George Landrith was a political science and economics major at conservative Brigham Young University and, later, business editor of the Virginia Journal of Law and Politics at the University of Virginia School of Law.

Since school, George’s fight for liberty continues.

He was admitted as a member of the United States Supreme Court bar, ran for federal office, elected to local office, appointed by the Virginia governor to a business council, and served as senior staff for two organizations in the conservative movement.

“As long as I can remember, I knew of the Leadership Institute,” George said.

“When I was involved in campaigns as
a volunteer, the best candidates seemed to have young staffers who
had been trained at the Leadership Institute,” George said. “So when
I was recruited to run for the U.S. House of Representatives in the early 1990s, I wanted to make sure I had the best possible team. That meant I wanted my staff and volunteers trained by LI.  I also made sure my consultant was LI-trained. He helped me obtain a solid staff and volunteer team all of whom were top LI trainees.”

George continued, “I was naturally a conservative and I had a solid working knowledge of conservative principles and why they matter in public policy discussions. But I had no idea of the political technology that was needed to be employed to take those conservative principles and turn them into an effective and compelling campaign. The Leadership Institute provided me with the training and knowledge to organize and run an effective campaign and create the opportunities to get my message out despite being outspent about 4-to-1.” 

He learned a lot from his campaign loss.

“While I did not win my congressional election, it was a very, very close race and the incumbent, who had won by almost 40 points only two years earlier, won by only the slimmest of margins. Despite the loss, I learned a great deal about public policy and the conservative movement,” George said.  “As a result, I began working at a conservative think-tank and have spent my professional life promoting the vision of the founders. Additionally, I've had the privilege of teaching at the Leadership Institute's various schools.” 

George believes in training the next generation of conservative leaders.

As an LI faculty member, George has shared his expertise at more than 15 LI trainings from Future Candidate Schools to Public Relations Schools to Campaign Management Schools, and he is an adjunct professor teaching constitutional law, appellate advocacy, and legal writing to future attorneys at George Mason School of Law.


George was elected to the school board in Virginia’s Albemarle County, and served children and the community in this capacity for three years. He was later appointed by Governor George Allen and confirmed by the General Assembly to the Virginia Workforce 2000 Advocacy Council. From 1997-1999, George served as vice president and general counsel to the National Legal Center for the Public Interest.

Since 1998, George has led Frontiers of Freedom as its president. This educational institute promotes conservative public policy based on the principles of individual freedom, peace through strength, limited government, free enterprise, and traditional American values as found in the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence.

“I work on a wide variety of issues in hopes of bringing conservative principles and solutions to the general public, opinion leaders, and policy makers,” George told the Leadership Institute. “All of my work relates to one or more of the ten tenets which defines and shapes all of our work at Frontiers of Freedom.”

To boot, George is a frequent TV and radio guest sharing freedom with all who will listen. He’s been quoted in more than 100 newspapers, including the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, the Chicago Tribune, National Review, the Washington Post, and Human Events. He also authored On Politics and Policy: Views on Freedom from an American Conservative.

“The Leadership Institute trains conservatives of all ages how to be more effective conservatives – how to organize and campaign more effectively, how to reach out through the media with greater impact, and how to speak more convincingly,” George said. “They teach college students how to organize and create conservative student publications. They teach campaign workers, managers, press secretaries, and candidates how do their jobs effectively and with high impact. They teach aspiring journalists and reporters the skills needed to be successful. To me the value of the Leadership Institute is that it teaches conservatives how to make their message the winning message.” 

Do you want a “winning” message?

Enroll in an upcoming training.

LI offers training in 50 states and dozens of countries each year. Please go here to register for an already-scheduled training or contact LI to request training in your area.

Please welcome George Landrith as LI’s Graduate of the Week.

To nominate a Leadership Institute graduate to be featured as LI's graduate of the week, please contact LI's External Affairs Officer Lauren Hart at LaurenHart@LeadershipInstitute.org.