Scott Rasmussen - Biography
Scott Rasmussen is founder and president of the Rasmussen Media Group. He is a political analyst, author, public speaker, independent public opinion pollster and columnist for Creators Syndicate. The Wall Street Journal proclaims that “Rasmussen is today’s leading insurgent pollster” and “a key player in the contact sport of politics.” The Washington Post says Rasmussen is a “driving force in American politics.”
Rasmussen and his firm have developed a reputation for delivering reliable, newsworthy and actionable public opinion data. Slate.com’s Mickey Kaus declared, “If you have a choice between Rasmussen and, say, the prestigious New York Times, go with Rasmussen.” Syndicated columnist and noted political analyst Michael Barone calls him “one of America’s most innovative pollsters.”
Scott speaks regularly at events and with the media, translating poll numbers into meaningful analysis and commentary about current events, underlying trends and the questions that Americans are curious about. He is a frequent guest on Fox News, CNBC, BBC and other major media outlets. He also has appeared on “The Colbert Report” on Comedy Central.
Highlighting Rasmussen Reports’ increasing pop culture presence, the firm has been mentioned on popular television shows like “The West Wing,” “The Tonight Show” and “Gossip Girl.”
Scott is the author of “Mad as Hell: How the Tea Party Movement Is Fundamentally Remaking Our Two-Party System” and “In Search of Self-Governance.” His recent book, “The People’s Money: How Voters Will Balance the Budget and Eliminate the Federal Debt” was published by Threshold, an imprint of Simon and Schuster. The book demonstrates how the American people are the solution to budget issues, rather than the problem, and shows specific proposals supported by a majority of voters that would balance the budget, completely eliminate the federal debt and prepare the nation for the 21st century.
Scott has been published in The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, The Boston Globe, Investor’s Business Daily, The Christian Science Monitor and other major publications.
Scott founded Rasmussen Reports in 2003 as a media company specializing in the collection, publication and distribution of public opinion polling information. The firm’s website, RasmussenReports.com, provides daily news coverage and commentary on political, business, economic and lifestyle topics. It has become America’s most visited public opinion polling site. In 2008, Rasmussen projected Barack Obama would win by a 52 percent to 46 percent margin, and the final results were 53 percent to 46 percent.
In 2004, Rasmussen was within half a percentage point of the actual vote totals earned by both George W. Bush and John Kerry.
Scott did his first radio commercial at the age of seven and considers the opportunity to have worked closely with hockey legend Gordie Howe, a career highlight. Scott and his father also founded the cable sports network ESPN.