Geoff Garin

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Geoff Garin (born 1953) is an American pollster, known as being the chief strategist for Senator Hillary Clinton's 2008 Presidential campaign. He is president of Peter D. Hart Research Associates and has appeared on the news programs of every major network, as well as serving as on-air analyst for CBS Radio's coverage of the national election returns for every election cycle since 1990. He has appeared many times on Meet the Press, Time, The Washington Post, The New York Times, and other prominent publications.

1 Hart Research
2 2008 Presidential election
3 Personal life
4 References

[edit] Hart Research

Garin is the president of Peter D. Hart Research Associates, a survey research firm. He became president of Hart Research in 1984, after having worked in the firm since 1978 as a senior analyst and vice president. He has conducted polling projects for a wide variety of foundations and non-profit organizations. The foundations for which he has undertaken policy research on include the Pew Charitable Trusts, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the Packard Foundation, the Gill Foundation, and the Annie E. Casey Foundation.

Garin's body of research has also included projects for the University of California, the College Board, the Alliance for Justice, the Association of Trial Lawyers of America, and the Fannie Mae Foundation. He has conducted research on health care issues for the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. His work on international policy issues includes studies for CARE, the U.S. Fund for UNICEF, and the United Nations Foundation. Garin has also worked for numerous politicians, such as Senators Max Baucus, Robert Byrd, John Rockefeller, and Hillary Clinton, and Virginia Governor Mark Warner.^[1]

[edit] 2008 Presidential election

Main article: United States presidential election, 2008

Main article: Hillary Clinton presidential campaign, 2008

Garin was hired in March 2008 as a pollster for Hillary Clinton's Presidential campaign. He replaced Mark Penn as the Clinton Campaign's chief strategist in April 2008, after the Wall Street Journal revealed that Penn met with Columbian official regarding a proposed free trade agreement opposed by Clinton and most labor unions. He has since changed the direction of the campaign, trying to stay away from negative campaigning. Senator Charles Schumer from New York stated that he “is the straightest shooter. He doesn’t try to shift the numbers or slant the numbers to buttress his argument" ^[2] Many said that his replacement of Mark Penn was merely a cover up, however, James Carville came to his defense saying ``Geoff Garin is someone I've known for 30 years. If they think they're going to let him be used in some bait-and-switch campaign, they're mistaken ^[3]^[4]

[edit] Personal life

Garin graduated from Harvard University, class of 1975. He is married to Deborah Berkowitz, an expert in occupational safety and health, and has two sons.