Special Report: Most influential

This year's most influential lists include some new faces and even more familiar names, but politics and the big end of town still dominate.

Federal Education Minister Julie Bishop has become the most influential Western Australian on the national political stage during the past year.

Former premier and political lobbyist Brian Burke heads the group of people who have fallen off the list of Western Australia's most influential in the past year.

The Carpenter ministry has experienced extraordinary turnover in the past year with several ministers sacked or demoted, leaving the same handful of senior campaigners in charge.

The state government employs thousands of public servants, yet real influence on public policy in Western Australia rests just with a handful of key advisers working in ministerial offices.

Tony Howarth is one of Western Australia's most highly regarded company directors, yet he is becoming as well known for his philanthropic activities as his commercial achievements.

John Akehurst may not have rated a mention in WA Business News' annual ranking of WA's most influential people a year ago, but during the past six months he has played a central role in deciding the fate of Alinta.

If the amount of money invested in Western Australia is a measure of influence, then the top executives at a handful of big resource companies are among the most influential people in the state.

Perth is home to some of Australia's biggest private fortunes, but having a lot of money does not always equate to having influence.

Newspaper editors are meant to focus on writing headlines, but the editor of Western Australia's only daily newspaper, Paul Armstrong, has actually generated more than his fair share over the past couple of years.

Western Australia's main public universities have some of the state's most influential people serving on their governing councils and among their senior staff.

Gooding Pervan partner Dalton Gooding and Azure Capital managing director Mark Barnaba are part of a team that last year enjoyed the highest revenue and profit derived from football earnings than any other club in the Australian Football League.