inFocus with David Coletto

What is it like running the polling operation for a US Presidential Election?

My guest on this episode of inFocus is John Anzalone, one of America’s top pollsters and messaging strategists. With more than 25 years of polling experience, John served as President Biden’s chief pollster. Prior to working on the 2020 campaign, John polled for the Obama and Clinton campaigns and on dozens of Senate, Gubernatorial, and Congressional campaigns. John and his firm say they have helped beat more incumbent Republicans and take back more Republican seats than any polling firm in the nation.

We talked about his experience running the polling work for Biden’s campaign, the state of American public opinion, President Biden’s recovery plan and whether he can start to break down polarization in the US.

Having the chance to interview John was such a privilege. I hope you enjoy our conversation.

It’s a cliché now to say that the COVID-19 pandemic has had a profound impact on everyone’s lives. But no sector in Canada has been as deeply affected and hardest hit as live music.

In the span of days, concerts big and small were postponed and cancelled around the world. Musicians, technicians, venue owners and staff, and others who depend on live music saw their livelihoods disappear.

Throughout 2020 and 2021, I worked closely with Music Canada, the national association representing the world’s largest record labels, to understand how the pandemic was impacting live music.

We surveyed Canadians on their intentions to return to live music, how well they understood the pandemic's impact and their desire for government support for the sector. We also surveyed artists and found that not only has the pandemic eliminated their primary income source, but it’s had a devastating impact on their emotional and mental health.

Like most Canadians, I want live music to be there when this pandemic is over and I’m so delighted that Music Canada’s CEO Patrick Rogers and the President and CEO of the Canadian Live Music Association Erin Benjamin agreed to join me to discuss what needs to happen to save the sector and get live music back on its feet once this is all over.

This is about protecting Canadian culture, art, and music and in my view, it’s not a question of whether governments should step up to support the industry, but the scale needed to get the sector and artists through it.

For more information about the Canadian Live Music Association's campaign, please visit: https://canadianlivemusic.ca/fortheloveoflive/

In this episode of inFocus, I share some thoughts and the findings of Abacus Data's latest poll on Canadian politics.

For all the details on the poll check out the release on the Abacus Data website.Have a great weekend!

On this episode of inFocus, I’m joined by my friend Dr. Jared Wesley a political scientist, associate professor, and Director of Master’s programs at the University of Alberta’s Department of Political Science.

Full disclosure, Jared and I were graduate students at the University of Calgary together and our chat today mimics the many we had while sharing an office while completing our PhDs.

Along with his teaching and administrative duties, Jared is also leading the Common Ground Politics (https://www.commongroundpolitics.ca/) – a research project helping to uncover the values that underpin politics in Western Canada and the American West.

On the podcast, we spoke about his research and perspectives on the East/West divide in Canada, the future of federalism, and what’s happening in Alberta.

Welcome to the first episode of Season 2 of inFocus with David Coletto.

Former PM Kim Campbell is notorious for saying that an election is no time to discuss serious issues. That might be true, but it turns out the best way to win an election campaign may be to run on issues that voters care about and want action on. Donald Trump did it. Boris Johnson did it. And Justin Trudeau did it.

That's what I learned from my chat with David Shor, an American data scientist who worked on the 2012 Obama campaign, the 2015 Canadian Liberal campaign, and currently is the head of data science at Open Labs, a progressive non-profit.

On the 2012 Obama campaign, Shor worked on the team that developed a polling model that projected Obama’s vote share within 1 percentage point in eight of the nine battleground states. Prior to working on the Obama campaign, David also worked alongside Nate Silver.

A recent New York Magazine article by Eric Levitz that got a lot of attention describes David as “a self-avowed socialist who insists that big-dollar donors pull the Democratic Party left. An adherent of Leninist vanguardism and the median voter theorem. And someone who can answer any question about US politics by referencing at least three peer-reviewed studies.

He’s recently appeared on MSNBC’s Morning Joe and HBO’s the Bill Maher show. So the obvious next booking was inFocus with David Coletto, right?

I’m thrilled he agreed to chat. We talked about his thoughts on polling, campaigns, and the simple but important lesson that running election campaigns on issues people care about works.

Season 2 of inFocus with David Coletto starts on April 12, with American data scientist David Shor.

This podcast is all about the intersection of public opinion, politics, and public policy.

I had a lot of great feedback on season 1 and I’m excited for what I have lined up on Season 2.

This season, I continue to speak with smart and interesting people who spend much of their days exploring why people do and think what they do.

I’ll be speaking with David Shor, an American data scientist who worked on Obama’s 2012 campaign and recently got a lot of attention with his analysis of the 2020 campaign and why he tought Donald Trump was GOOD for the Republican Party.

I’ll talk climate change with Seth Klein, author of Good War and how public attitudes about climate change seem to be ahead of political leaders.

I recently finished reading a fascinating book called Beyond the Red Wall: Why Labour Lost, How the Conservatives Won and What Will Happen Next? By British pollster Deborah Mattinson. She spent weeks in northern England trying to understand why the once-solid Labour region voted Conservative in the 2019 British General Election.

I speak with political scientist Jared Wesley about what’s happening in Alberta and interview former Colombian ambassador to Canada Federico Hoyos about his time in Canada and what it taught him about who we are and how we are different.

I am also excited to interview Biden’s lead pollster, John Anzalone about that campaign and what it’s like managing the polling for a billion-dollar election campaign.

This is just a taste of what I have planned for season 2. Thanks for all the support so far. Please share the podcast with others you think will find it useful and enjoyable, please rate the podcast, and if you haven’t already, please subscribe so you never miss an episode.

Season 2 of inFocus with David Coletto starts on April 12, with American data scientist David Shor.

This podcast is all about the intersection of public opinion, politics, and public policy.

I had a lot of great feedback on season 1 and I’m excited for what I have lined up on Season 2.

This season, I continue to speak with smart and interesting people who spend much of their days exploring why people do and think what they do.

I’ll be speaking with David Shor, an American data scientist who worked on Obama’s 2012 campaign and recently got a lot of attention with his analysis of the 2020 campaign and why he tought Donald Trump was GOOD for the Republican Party.

I’ll talk climate change with Seth Klein, author of Good War and how public attitudes about climate change seem to be ahead of political leaders.

I recently finished reading a fascinating book called Beyond the Red Wall: Why Labour Lost, How the Conservatives Won and What Will Happen Next? By British pollster Deborah Mattinson. She spent weeks in northern England trying to understand why the once-solid Labour region voted Conservative in the 2019 British General Election.

I speak with political scientist Jared Wesley about what’s happening in Alberta and interview former Colombian ambassador to Canada Federico Hoyos about his time in Canada and what it taught him about who we are and how we are different.

I am also excited to interview Biden’s lead pollster, John Anzalone about that campaign and what it’s like managing the polling for a billion-dollar election campaign.

This is just a taste of what I have planned for season 2. Thanks for all the support so far. Please share the podcast with others you think will find it useful and enjoyable, please rate the podcast, and if you haven’t already, please subscribe so you never miss an episode.

In this episode, I share a briefing on Abacus Data's latest survey on Canadian Politics.We surveyed 2,000 Canadians from March 25 to 30, 2021.The survey finds the Liberals have opened up an 8-point lead over the Conservatives.

You can find all the details on the survey here: https://abacusdata.ca/liberals-lead-by-8-otoole-negatives/

Brexit, an independence referendum, and the rise of Boris Johnson – the past decade in British politics has been tumultuous and fascinating.

On this episode of inFocus with David Coletto, we cross the pond.

I’m joined by Keiran Pedley, Director of Politics at UK polling agency, Ipsos MORI.

Keiran is also the host and editor of the Polling Matters Podcast.

We are going to explore Vox Britannia – how public opinion has shifted over the past few years and helps to explain some historic events that will shape British politics for years to come.

This podcast was recorded in December 2020 so some of the poll results mentioned may have changed.

Keiran has been doing research and commentating on polls and politics in the UK for years and our conversation takes us from general elections to Brexit, to the Scottish independence referendum.

On this episode of inFocus with David Coletto, I’m joined by pollster and strategist Don Guy.

Don has been working in the world of politics and public affairs research for over 2 decades, having served as campaign director, advisor and pollster for the BC and Ontario Liberal parties. He was the Chief of Staff to former Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty.

Currently, he is the owner and Chief Strategy Officer at Pollara Strategic Insights, a Vice President at American polling firm Greenberg Quinlan Rosner, and a founding partner at KTG Public Affairs Partners.

Don is one of Canada’s most experienced campaign managers and shares insights into the role of research on political campaigns and how it has evolved over time.