Polling in the Age of Trump: A Panel Discussion with Doug Sosnik, John Anzalone, and Jim McLaughlin

The Institute of Politics and the Center for Public Leadership invites you to a panel discussion on Polling in the Age of Trump, examining how public opinion research has evolved amid polarization, distrust, and rapid political change. 

Featuring three of the nation’s most experienced pollsters and political strategists—Doug Sosnik, John Anzalone, and Jim McLaughlin—the conversation will explore what polling gets right, where it falls short, and how campaigns, media, and the public should interpret survey data today. Drawing on decades of experience advising presidents, governors, and major institutions across the political spectrum, the panelists will offer an inside look at how data, messaging, and voter behavior are shaping modern American politics.

Please register with a valid Harvard email address to attend in-person.

About Doug Sosnik, Senior Advisor, Brunswick Group

Doug is a policy and political expert who has closely advised President Bill Clinton and multiple U.S. Senators, governors, Fortune 100 corporations, foundations and universities.

Doug has for decades advised a range of organizations and individuals on their critical issues. His clients have included the National Basketball Association, the Motion Picture Association of America, CNBC, The Rockefeller Foundation and The University of North Carolina.

He served as a senior advisor to President Clinton from 1994 to 2000, playing a key role in policy, strategy, political and communications decisions in the White House; his titles included Senior Advisor for Policy and Strategy, White House Political Director and Deputy Legislative Director. He has also advised over 50 U.S. Senators and governors. 

About John Anzalone, Founding Partner, Impact Research

John Anzalone is one of the nation’s top pollsters and messaging strategists. He has spent decades working on some of the toughest political campaigns in modern history and helping corporations, trade associations, and advocacy groups navigate complex challenges and achieve their goals. 

John has polled for four of the past five presidential races, serving as chief pollster for President Joe Biden’s 2020 campaign. In that role, he helped develop the messaging and strategy that drove paid communications, major policy rollouts, speeches, and convention thematics. He also polled for the campaigns of President Barack Obama (2008 & 2012) and Hillary Clinton (2016), and he has helped elect dozens of U.S. senators, governors, and members of the House of Representatives. John currently polls for Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer and Pete Aguilar, Chair of the Democratic Caucus and the third ranking member in the House. In 2026, John will lead the strategic team for Roy Cooper’s run for U.S. Senate in North Carolina.

John helped found the Wall Street Journal poll with GOP pollster Tony Fabrizio, which has become the premier national and battleground media poll in the country. He also has teamed with Fabrizio to conduct bipartisan polling for AARP nationally and in every battleground state each election cycle.

With more than 30 years of experience in message development and strategic execution, John has been called on by key decision-makers, executives, and CEOs to provide counsel in a changing world and marketplace. With extensive experience using research and data to break down complex subjects into digestible messages that resonate with target audiences, John has successfully helped his clients craft winning platforms and earn public support time and time again. He sees his role as providing clients with clear guidance on what to say and whom to say it to. John currently works for AT&T, Coinbase, AFLAC, and Southern Company, to name a few.

John grew up in St. Joseph, Michigan, and graduated from Kalamazoo College in Kalamazoo, Michigan. John is married, has four grown children, two great dogs, and lives in Inlet Beach, Florida. He roots for the Alabama Crimson Tide and the Chicago Cubs.

About Jim McLaughlin, President & Partner, McLaughlin & Associates

Jim McLaughlin is a nationally recognized public opinion expert, strategic consultant and political strategist who has helped to elect a US President, Prime Ministers, a Senate Majority Leader and a Speaker of the House. Jim has worked for over 70 members of Congress, 14 U.S. Senators, 10 Governors, numerous Mayors and scores of other elected officials. He also serves as a consultant and market research strategist to Fortune 500 companies.

Mr. McLaughlin’s knowledge of cutting-edge market research, data analytics and micro-targeting, gives him a unique perspective on public opinion research, and how it can be applied to effective political, marketing and communications strategies.

Mr. McLaughlin has a wide range of political experience, having personally managed political campaigns as well as business and marketing campaigns. His expertise as a former campaign manager gives him special insights on political survey research and how it can best be applied into a key element of a winning campaign. He has worked on campaigns at virtually every level of American politics, and was recognized by Campaigns and Elections magazine as one the “Rising Stars” in American politics.

Mr. McLaughlin has been called a “Big Winner” by a leading political magazine for his work on some of the top races in the country. McLaughlin was one of only two Republican pollsters named as a part of Roll Call Newspapers’ Fabulous Fifty for his work and was also profiled as a “Mover and Shaker” by Campaigns and Elections Magazine. Mr. McLaughlin has worked on some of the top races in the country. During this past election cycle, he helped to elect President Donald J. Trump and McLaughlin & Associates helped win 5 of the 10 toughest congressional races in the country according to one respected publication. McLaughlin also helped to elect several other statewide GOP office holders that ranged from Governor, US Senate to Attorney General. McLaughlin & Associates has also been widely accredited for its accurate polling in predicting a Donald Trump victory.

Jim McLaughlin is sought after as a commentator on national as well as international television and radio programs and has appeared on the Sean Hannity Show, CBS News, NBC News, Fox News Channel, Fox Morning News, CNN and C-SPAN,. He also is frequently quoted in publications such as The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Washington Times, The New York Post, The Weekly Standard, Politico, and National Review.

Jim McLaughlin currently resides in New Jersey with his wife and their three children.