Our Team
Christine Matthews, President
Christine Matthews is a leading public opinion pollster known for her understanding of swing voters, particularly women. She has conducted political polling at every level and nationally, including for numerous Super PACs supporting candidates for president and Congress. The research she directed on behalf of Maryland Governor Larry Hogan’s re-election campaign was highlighted as key to his success among women voters.
As one of the expert contributors to the Center for American Women in Politics (CAWP) & Barbara Lee Family Foundation’s GenderWatch project, Christine analyzed gender dynamics in the 2018 and 2020 election cycles. She is also one of the pollsters conducting cutting-edge research on how voters perceive women candidates. In 2022, she was part of a bipartisan team conducting “She’s the Difference” research on behalf of the AARP which was focused on the priorities and electoral importance of women 50 and older.
She is proud to work with organizations and elected officials who support democracy, civility and bipartisanship, and responsible governance.
Her advocacy and issue work for a wide range of clients focuses on topics such as health care and well-being, education, children and family policies, land use, energy and the environment, women in the workplace, and infrastructure.
Chris has a B.A. from Indiana University and a M.A.L.S. from Georgetown University and is a member of the American Association for Public Opinion Research (AAPOR). Campaigns & Elections magazine named her as one of their top 50 influencers shaping campaigns and the future of the industry (2014). She resides in Alexandria, Virginia.
Karen McManis, Vice President
Karen McManis is an experienced strategist and communicator and Riva Institute trained focus group moderator.
Karen helps leaders of local, national, and global organizations gain new insight into the values, beliefs, and perceptions of their key stakeholders.
With more than 20 years of qualitative research experience, Karen is adept at moderating long-term panels and online and in-person focus groups. She specializes in conducting in-depth interviews with community leaders, business owners, key voters and people with lived experience and has conducted hundreds of these interviews in more than 30 states.
Her findings have been used to support brand-building and re-branding campaigns, message development, public relations campaigns, executive speeches and presentations, policy platforms, and grant writing and development.
Karen holds a BA in Journalism, with Honors, from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she was a James M. Johnston Scholar. She earned her MBA, with a concentration in Marketing, from Johns Hopkins University.