- Pritzker Fellows
- Current Fellows
- David Axelrod
David Axelrod
CNN Senior Political Commentator & UChicago Institute of Politics Founding Director
Biography
David Axelrod is a preeminent American political strategist and commentator and the former chief strategist and senior advisor to President Barack Obama. Axelrod was the founding director of the University of Chicago's non-partisan Institute of Politics. He currently serves as a Distinguished Fellow at the University of Chicago and as a senior political commentator for CNN. He is the host of The Axe Files, a top-rated podcast featuring in depth conversations with public figures across the political spectrum. A former political writer for the Chicago Tribune, Axelrod produced media strategy and advertising for 150 campaigns across the U.S., culminating in President Obama’s historic elections. Axelrod is also the author of The New York Times best-selling memoir, Believer: My Forty Years in Politics.
Seminars
“Notes from the Battleground”
For an election year as consequential as this one, who better to offer us weekly campaign updates and penetrating analysis than IOP Founder David Axelrod. A onetime political writer for the Chicago Tribune, the chief strategist for Barack Obama's presidential campaigns, and a former senior White House advisor, David is one of the most widely quoted - and prescient - political voices in American life.
David will return to the IOP this fall armed with analysts, reporters, pollsters and other campaign insiders to talk us through the campaign through the aperture of each battleground state - Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Arizona, Nevada, North Carolina and Georgia.
He will begin each week with the campaign news of the day, followed by virtual visits from high level operatives in the swing states around the country. Together they will explore the nuances and pivotal moments that will tip the balance in each state, go deep on campaign strategies and, after the election, wrap up what we have learned from this pivotal political season and what it bodes for the future in Washington, the political parties and our deeply divided nation.
Seminars are open to current UChicago students only.
How has the race evolved since Vice President Harris replaced Joe Biden at the topic of the ticket? Where is the race going, and what do polls tell us right now about the key swing states?
Special Guest: Jon Fromowitz, Co-Founder of Blue Sky Strategy
Special Guest: John King, CNN Chief National Correspondent
Special Guests (via Zoom): Charlie Dent, former U.S. Representative (R-PA); Reince Priebus, former White House Chief of Staff & Chairman of the Republican National Committee; Saul Shorr, Political Consultant; Fred Upton, former U.S. Representative (R-MI); Terry Walsh, President of The Strategy Group; and Ben Wikler, Chairman of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin
Join IOP Pritzker Fellow David Axelrod and his Hacks on Tap co-hosts, NBC News & MSNBC analyst, John Heilemann and Republican political consultant, Mike Murphy as they offer a post-election recap and reflect on what the results mean for the future of the nation.