Capitol Weekly’s Top 100: David Quintana

95. David Quintana

There are a lot of “characters” on this list, but lobbyist David Quintana is perhaps the most like something dreamed up by a TV screenwriter. Following a 10-year stint in the Air Force, Quintana found himself working as a nightclub bouncer. After a particularly unruly shift, Quintana thought, “I’m not a dumb guy – why am I dealing with all these boneheads?” A degree from UC Davis and a J.D. from Boston College followed, and by 2004 he was the Political Director for the nascent California Tribal Business Alliance. In 2005 he introduced The Back to Session Bash (now just “The Bash”), the annual standing-room-only power party that features a mix of political heavyweights, hip hop stars, and Quintana as ringmaster. (Full disclosure, Capitol Weekly is a media sponsor of The Bash.) His client list features a bevy of cannabis interests, Indian Tribes and local-control housing orgs. With his party, podcasts, and an imposing physique honed by three hours a day in the gym, Quintana cuts a unique path in California’s Third House.

Updated Aug. 9, 2022