Capitol Weekly’s Top 100: Arnie Sowell Jr.

86. Arnie Sowell Jr.

Arnie Sowell Jr. is the Executive Director of Nextgen Policy, the California-based nonprofit launched by billionaire Tom Steyer to advocate for progressive policies in the Golden State. Steyer (a habituè of this list for several years) has increasingly turned his focus to the national picture and relies on key advisors like Sowell to direct Nextgen’s efforts in California. Sowell oversees a huge portfolio; Nextgen Policy advocates on an array of issues ranging from Climate Change to Income Inequality to Housing to Food Insecurity. Sowell’s background – two decades in the California State Assembly where he served as Policy Director for five Speakers – gives him the chops to effectively direct the organization’s significant spending in the state.