Road to Election: The Pulse of the Nation after Iowa and New Hampshire

The 2024 U.S. election will significantly shape the transatlantic political environment and policy landscape. The results of this monumental election will have serious implications for the future of the United States, but also for the transatlantic relationship. Transatlantic organizations play an integral role in convening thought leaders, bringing a transatlantic perspective to U.S. and European domestic policy discussions, and influencing public discourse on both sides of the Atlantic. This will be particularly important in 2024, which is why the American Council on Germany is pleased to partner with over 20 other transatlantic organizations and political foundations on the “Road to Election 2024” virtual event series.

Running from January 2024 to January 2025, the virtual event series will host in-depth discussions and foster a vibrant exchange of ideas in the lead-up to the pivotal 2024 U.S. election. The aim of the series is multifold: to inform, to engage in dynamic dialogues, and to champion democratic values by presenting diverse perspectives. The initiative’s events will feature prominent researchers, policymakers, commentators, and civil society representatives, exploring diverse formats and a wide array of topics. From public polling and media impact to electoral demographics, the future of U.S. democracy, and pressing policy issues like trade and immigration, the “Road to Election” series aims to offer comprehensive insights for audiences in both the United States and Germany.

Join us on January 25 at 11:00 am ET as we kick off this series with a virtual discussion featuring two expert political advisors, Matt Gorman, Vice President of Target Victory, and Margie Omero, Principal at the Democratic polling firm GBAO, and moderated by Juliane Schäuble, U.S. Correspondent for der Tagesspiegel.

Matt Gorman has advised presidential candidates, members of Congress, and Fortune 50 companies on communications and messaging. He is currently a Vice President at Targeted Victory, a Washington D.C.-based public affairs and digital marketing firm.

A veteran of three presidential campaigns, he most recently served as a senior advisor to Tim Scott for America. Before that, he was the Communications Director for the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC), rapid response director and national spokesman for Jeb Bush’s 2016 presidential campaign, and an aide to Mitt Romney’s 2012 campaign.

Mr. Gorman regularly appears as an analyst on network and cable news programs. A native of Torrington, Connecticut, he is a graduate of Stonehill College and resides in Washington, DC.

Margie Omero is a Principal at the Democratic polling firm GBAO with over 25 years of experience providing strategic advice and qualitative and quantitative research to candidates, organizations, and brands. In 2022, she worked on the two most competitive gubernatorial races in the country—Governors Tony Evers (WI) and Laura Kelly (KS)—and with the only Democratic Senate pickup, Senator John Fetterman (PA). She also worked with the DSCC to help re-elect Senators Patty Murray (WA) and Michael Bennet (CO).

Her other clients have included AARP, AFL-CIO, The Center for American Progress, Third Way, Groundwork Collaborative, DCCC, DLCC, DNC, EMILY’s List, Planned Parenthood, NARAL, Everytown for Gun Safety, and Brady PAC. Her work has explored some of the country’s most challenging public opinion questions, such as race, abortion rights, immigration, economic policy, climate change, corporate accountability, voting and participation, guns, aid in dying, and the January 6th riots.

Ms. Omero graduated from the University of Texas at Austin, with High Honors and Special Honors in the University honors program, writing her honors thesis using longitudinal survey data. She is professionally and academically trained in statistics and sampling and has led over a thousand qualitative sessions and focus groups.

Juliane Schäuble is the U.S. Correspondent of Der Tagesspiegel, Berlin’s biggest newspaper. Before she moved to Washington, DC, in June 2018 she was the head of the political department of the paper where she was responsible for the front page and the political section. She has more than twelve years of experience in the business and the political department of Der Tagesspiegel.

Ms. Schäuble earned her Master’s in Political Science at the University in Potsdam, Germany. Her studies included one semester at American University in Washington, DC, where she took classes in American foreign policy and worked part-time for the “American Council of Young Political Leaders” (“Washington Semester Program”).