Crystal Strait
Crystal is a founder and partner at Bright Light Strategies. For over 20 years, Crystal has helped elected leaders and organizations be a voice for change in their community at the local, state and national level. Crystal has served as a policy advisor, communications director, and chief of staff in the state legislature. Crystal has served as the first AAPI President of Planned Parenthood Affiliates of California and female AAPI Political Director for the California Democratic Party.
Crystal’s career in legislative policy work has included a wide range of issues including health, energy, labor, and education policy navigation politics and promoting innovation. Specifically, Crystal has served as senior policy advisor and communications director to chair of the Assembly Utilities and Commerce Committee in the early 2000s, chief of staff to the Assembly and Senate Health Committee Chair, and chief of staff and senior advisor to the last two Sacramento Mayor’s focusing on innovation and business and economic development.
Crystal’s successes in the legislature and local government have included supporting expansion of Medi-cal services to 3,000,000 new patients; securing new funding of $100M to serve nearly 800,000 patients in sexual and reproductive health; creating a private-public partnership to enhance smart cities in the Sacramento region and a $10 million city innovation fund to spur economic development and attract new companies and high wage jobs.
Like her other partners, Crystal has a strong background in grassroots and electoral, community organizing, and public affairs campaigns. Starting as a grassroots activist in the College Dems and Young Democrats, she became the President of Young Democrats in California and then the President of the Young Democrats of America leading programs that focused on increasing youth voter turnout. On the state and federal level, Crystal ran the coordinated campaign for the California Democratic Party in 2006 and 2008, served as Sen. Barbara Boxer’s political director in her final re-election, and worked on numerous legislative races.
Crystal lives in downtown Sacramento, California with her husband Andrew and their son Tadashi. She graduated from the University of California, Santa Barbara with a Bachelor’s in Political Science and emphasis Public Service.