She is the daughter of Moon Landrieu, former New Orleans mayor and Secretary of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, and the sister of Mitch Landrieu, a former Mayor of New Orleans and Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana. She received her baccalaureate degree from Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge. After working as a real estate agent for several years, she was elected as a state representative (1980–1988) and state treasurer (1988–1996).