About
Betsy Lin
Founder of Beelinning Strategies
Betsy Lin is a national strategist working at the intersection of politics, advocacy and campaigns. As the founder of Beelinning Strategies, Betsy leverages her over two decades of experience across the Senate, federal campaigns, and multi-million dollar organizations to help her clients craft strategic plans and drive high-impact results.
“Betsy is an invaluable thought partner that has helped to reposition our organization to be at the forefront of campaigns in the fight to regain reproductive freedom for all. She draws on her wealth of experience to navigate relationships on the Hill and find solutions that make sense for the organization. She is a confidante and team player that I can trust.”
- Mini Timmaraju, Reproductive Freedom For All President
“Betsy has coached me through numerous campaigns and life changes. Her advice is always thoughtful, smart and gets me on the right track. Because of her help, I’ve gone from managing a state house race to a national program in multiple states.”
- Ale Gomez, 2021 BLC cohort
Betsy served as Chief of Staff to United States Senator Mazie Hirono after running her historic race to be the first woman to represent the state of Hawaii and first Asian American and first immigrant woman to serve in the role of United States Senator. Betsy herself was the only Asian American female chief to serve during her seven years in the Senate, positioning the Senator throughout her term as a leader on comprehensive immigration reform, women’s rights, and as a conscientious voice on US military engagement in the foreign policy space. Betsy spent the first five years traveling between Washington DC and the state, helping the Senator enact her campaign promises and building out her profile with press and constituents across all 8 islands. In Washington DC, Betsy managed the high stakes relationships with other Members of Congress, DC and Hawaii based stakeholders and built out one of the top three diverse offices in the US Senate.
In 2018, Betsy was named head of Everybody Votes Campaign (EVC), dedicated to right-sizing the registration gaps in historically disenfranchised communities. She grew the organization, budget, staff, and footprint while managing relationships with state and local based partners. Betsy led the organization through the COVID-19 pandemic and racial justice uprisings, balancing the needs of partners and funders.
"Betsy is an incredible coach and mentor, and I am endlessly grateful for her impact on my professional development. She was invested in my personal and professional growth and held me accountable to doing the best work possible. While working with Betsy, I was able to grow my skills as a manager while simultaneously making sure I was holding myself and my team to high standards as we built a winning campaign. I am who I am because of Betsy's leadership and coaching."
Stephanie Medina, Deputy Director of Partner Engagement, Zinc Collective
“Betsy is dedicated to the mission of supporting and elevating women of color elected officials. In her work with our organization, Betsy used her network and expertise to help us build and execute an ambitious project plan. She keeps us focused on our goals and consistently delivers results.”
- Muthoni Wambu Kraal, Women’s Democracy Lab Co-Founder
Prior to serving in these executive roles, Betsy started her Hill career serving as deputy Chief of Staff for Senator Byron Dorgan of North Dakota managing his appropriations portfolio for the state.
During the 2008 cycle, Betsy worked as a deputy political director at the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC), where she directly advised and supported seven US Senate campaigns, making spending recommendations and bringing home wins in 4 of the races that year. She came to the DSCC from Hawaii as Senator Akaka’s field director in 2006, fresh off the massive health care organizing campaign as a community political organizer for the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) in Southern California.