No. 94: Capitol Weekly’s Top 100

94. Lisa Gasperoni
As chief political consultant to former Senate Leader Darrell Steinberg, Gasperoni earned her pay: she is credited as the campaign savant responsible for the Dems’ surprise capture of a two-thirds majority in the Senate in the 2012 elections. Gasperoni left the Senate in 2013 to focus on LG Campaigns, the political consulting firm that she runs out of an office just down the hall from Jerry Brown’s old digs above Mikuni Sushi at 16th and J. She’s helping out with legislative efforts, and did a bang-up job this year as senior campaign strategist for her old boss Darrell Steinberg’s recent run for Sacto mayor – he avoided a runoff, winning the race outright in the June primary with 59% of the vote. She got her start as a fundraiser for the Assembly Democratic Caucus, later moving to the Speakers Office of Majority Services. She left the Assembly for a gig at Ross Communications, where she did 20 years as CEO before returning to the building to give Republican strategists heartburn.

Updated August 9, 2016