After more googling, I found the solution.
1) Add the macro LT_INIT to configure.ac
LT_INIT(static)
There are many other options, see http://www.gnu.org/software/libtool/manual/html_node/LT_005fINIT.html#LT_005fINIT
2) Add the variable progname_LDADD to Makefile.am
progname_LDADD = library_name.la
where progname is defined in
bin_PROGRAM = progname
There are certainly things that I am missing, but it is working for now. Any suggestion is welcome.