Nial's Bio
Nial Patel joined Cornerstone Government Affairs in 2011 after nearly a decade of service to Governor Bobby Jindal, dating back to his first run for governor in 2003. As one of the longest serving senior staff members for the Governor, Nial was the Director of Scheduling and Operations. Additionally, when Governor Jindal was elected to Congress, Nial served as his Executive Assistant. During his tenure with Jindal, Nial's duties varied from campaigning to research and outreach, working with elected politicians, stakeholders and government officials from Washington, D.C. and across the state of Louisiana.Nial holds a master’s degree in economics from the Ourso College of Business at Louisiana State University (LSU), and graduated Magna Cum Laude with a bachelor’s degree in the science in economics from LSU, where he also minored political science and business administration. Originally from New Orleans, Nial attended Holy Cross High School and the Louisiana School for Math, Science, and the Arts.
In 2014, he was recognized as one of the top forty under 40 leaders in the community and is alumni of the Baton Rouge Leadership and Louisiana Leadership programs. Nial serves on the Board of Directors of the Baton Rouge Area Chamber (currently as chair), the Southeast Super Region Committee, New Schools for Baton Rouge Board (serving as chair in 2024), Teach for America Board (serving as emeritus director) and Baton Rouge Alliance for Children. In 2019, Nial was recognized as the Volunteer Activist of the Year by the Emerge Foundation. Nial also founded the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry’s (LABI) Emerging Leaders Council, and they honored him as the Business Champion of the Year in 2020. In 2023, the YWCA honored Nial with an Advocacy Award for his efforts in the community. He founded the SafeBR coalition with the mission to address public safety in Baton Rouge, working hand in hand with stakeholders and leaders throughout the city-parish. He has helped raised money for the American Cancer Society, Republican Governor’s Association and several other local initiatives. He has been active with campaigns for many current and former elected officials, and currently resides in Baton Rouge.