Reflections on the Next Chapter

The Cook Political Report has been my professional home for most of my career. 

In 1997, Charlie Cook offered me a job covering House elections for the Cook Political Report. I loved every minute of it. I covered House races for five cycles, and left in 2007 to serve as Editor-in-Chief of National Journal’s Hotline for three years. I then joined ABC News as the network’s political director in 2010. I returned in 2013 as the Cook Political Report’s first National Editor. 

A lot has changed since I started at the Cook Political Report. We no longer print on paper. We’ve moved offices four or five times. We’ve grown the staff. But, the one thing that has never changed is our commitment to non-partisan analysis of campaigns and elections. 

To be mentored by Charlie has been the privilege of a lifetime. He set a standard of excellence that this publication will continue to follow. He commands universal respect in Washington, not just because of his work, but because of his kindness and generosity. He proved you can be critical without being petty. You can be an honest broker without selling out others. 

I don’t need to tell you that we are living through an era of unprecedented partisanship and never-ending political upheaval. For the first time in history, four consecutive presidents (Clinton, Bush, Obama, Trump) have lost their parties’ Senate and House majorities. In the last two presidential elections, control of the White House has come down to less than 80,000 votes in three states. At the same time, voters are more locked into their partisanship than ever, making it harder for a president or even outside events like a pandemic or economic crises to swing political opinion in a significant way. In short, we are living through a time of unprecedented change and incredible political stability. 

And, quite frankly, the Cook Political Report is perfectly positioned for this moment. We meet the candidates. We talk to sources on the ground and in the campaigns. We draw on our years of experience following hundreds of races. We dig into the data and the demographics. We scrutinize conventional wisdom. We aren’t here to add to the noise, we are here to cut through it; to take the time to understand our politics instead of reacting with knee-jerk opinions about it.  

Quite simply, we love what we do. And, we love being able to share that with you. 

We’ll begin by heading into a midterm election where, once again, control of both houses of Congress is at stake. A midterm that, for the first time in 20 years, will coincide with redistricting. Our team is on top of it all, giving you the insights and information you need to better understand what’s happening and why. 

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