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Lobbyist Jennie Dorsett passes away

Longtime legislative lobbyist Jennie Dorsett passed away this weekend in Myrtle Beach.

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Lobbyist Jennie Dorsett
By
Laura Leslie

Longtime legislative lobbyist Jennie Dorsett passed away this weekend. Her friends say she was in Myrtle Beach at the time and that it was unexpected. Further details are unconfirmed. 

N.C. Professional Lobbyists Association President Amy Fulbright sent out this notice Sunday:

It is with great sadness that I inform you of the passing of our friend, fellow lobbyist and NCPLA member Jennie Dorsett.

As details become available regarding arrangements, I will send additional notice.

Please keep Jennie's family and her friends in your thoughts and prayers.

This today from Speaker Tillis' office: 

Visitation will be Wednesday, March 2, from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Brown-Wynne Funeral Home in Raleigh. Her funeral service will be Thursday, March 3, at 2 p.m. at Brown-Wynne. In lieu of flowers, please send a donation to either the Boys and Girls Club of N.C., The Optimist Club or any other charitable organization.

Dorsett's upbeat personality and quick smile won her many friends at the legislature over the years. They were devastated by the news. Tony Adams, her fellow lobbyist for N.C. Outdoor Advertising, called it "a total shock." McGuireWoods' Harry Kaplan said, "It's hard to be down here tonight, knowing I won't see her here again."

Dorsett had been a registered lobbyist in Raleigh since 1993, working this year for Electricities, the N.C. Outdoor Advertising Association and the Boys and Girls Clubs, among other clients. Her Secretary of State listing is here.

Before she went into lobbying, Dorsett was a staff attorney at the legislature, where she reportedly worked with Tom Ross on structured sentencing. Friends say she graduated from Broughton High School in Raleigh in 1969.

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