Capitol Weekly Top 100: Rob Stutzman

92. Rob Stutzman

Longtime campaign consultant Rob Stutzman is a charter member of the “Never Trump” wing of the Republican Party, much more Meg Whitman than Larry Elder. Opposing current Republican orthodoxy has probably cost him business from the right wing of the party, but his services remain in demand from more moderate conservatives who believe they can win in California – a tough sell, as his clients Michael Schellenberger and Anne-Marie Schubert found out this year. Schellenberger, who challenged Newsom for the governorship, received 3% of the vote; Schubert finished fourth in the Attorney General’s race. Though those clients didn’t make it out of the Primary, Stutzman will be hard at it through November: He’s working with Californians for Tribal Sovereignty and Safe Gaming, a ballot measure committee opposing Proposition 27, the sportsbook-backed initiative that seeks to legalize mobile sports betting in the state.

Updated Aug. 9, 2022