Capitol Weekly’s Top 100: Kristin Bertolina Faust

No. 22 Kristin Bertolina Faust

Jesse Unruh once said money is the mother’s milk of politics. Nobody knowns that better than Kristin Bertolina Faust, who is the fundraiser to California’s political stars. She founded BB&G, a Sacramento-based fundraising and political consulting firm in 1999, and alongside her colleagues Angie Georgoulias and Rhianon See-Barnato has since guided it into becoming the go-to fundraising firm for almost every major Dem heavyweight. Her reach extends well beyond California too – she was co-chair of the fundraising team that helped Kamala Harris raise a record $1 billion in just over 100 days during the 2024 presidential campaign. But even that doesn’t begin to tell her story. Bertolina Faust also manages campaigns (see Padilla, Alex) and consults for many more, almost exclusively on the long-term fundraising side of it all. In addition to Harris and Padilla, she is also Gov. Gavin Newsom’s top cash collector, helping him raise megabucks to fend off a recall campaign and get Prop. 50 over the finish line.

Updated Aug. 11, 2026