About Rhodes

Rhodes Cook has been an avid observer of American politics virtually his entire life. For nearly a quarter century, he worked as a political writer for the Congressional Quarterly Weekly Report, serving as senior writer for more than a decade. He covered both presidential and congressional elections, with a particular emphasis on the presidential nominating process and voting trends in general. Since his retirement from Congressional Quarterly in 1997, he has launched a web site (www.rhodescook.com) and a separate bimonthly political newsletter (“The Rhodes Cook Letter”), which is in its 11th year.

In addition, Rhodes is a senior columnist for “Larry J. Sabato’s Crystal Ball,” a publication of the University of Virginia’s Center for Politics. He writes a weekly political column for the online edition of The Wall Street Journal. And over the years, Rhodes has written free-lance pieces for the Outlook section of The Washington Post and the op-ed page of The New York Times.

"Rhodes is a classic green eye shades guy," says Charlie Cook. “He is looking at the numbers behind the numbers, one of the very best quantitative analysts of American elections alive today. We are excited to offer our subscribers his remarkable and insightful look at the numbers."

Rhodes has also authored a variety of election-related books – from America Votes (CQ Press), a biennial compilation of presidential and midterm election data, to The Presidential Nominating Process: A Place for Us? (Rowman & Littlefield). On election nights, he works with ABC News, helping to project the outcome of congressional races.

Rhodes grew up in State College, Pa., and received a B.A. and M.A. in history from Penn State University.