Capitol Weekly’s Top 100: John Latimer

26. John Latimer

There’s a strong argument to be made that John Latimer is the top lobbyist in California. For one, he leads the most lucrative lobbying firm in all of Sacramento, Capitol Advocacy, which boasts more than 80 clients – including such household names as Amazon, DoorDash, MetLife, PG&E, Pepsi and T-Mobile – that have delivered more than $13 million in payments during the first five quarters of the legislative cycle. He’s also done basically everything in California politics. He’s worked in the legislature as a chief of staff and as a consultant to several committees. He has managed multiple political campaigns. He even ran for the Assembly himself in 1998. No, he didn’t win that election, but he has rebounded nicely, finding unparalleled success in the third house and perhaps making himself more influential than he ever could have been as an elected official.

Updated Aug. 7, 2024