The Harris Poll
The Harris Poll is a long-running American public-opinion polling and market-research brand founded by Louis Harris in 1963.
Last updated August 31, 2026
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Overview
The Harris Poll is an American public-opinion polling, market-research, and analytics brand established by pollster Louis Harris in 1963. It developed from Louis Harris & Associates, the research firm Harris founded in 1956, and became known for recurring surveys of American public attitudes, behavior, and motivations. The poll was created as a continuing measure of public opinion rather than as a one-time election survey, giving it a durable role in tracking changes in social, political, and consumer sentiment. The brand's origins are closely associated with the development of modern political polling in the United States. Louis Harris conducted polling for John F. Kennedy's 1960 presidential campaign through Louis Harris & Associates. The firm subsequently advised political and other public leaders by interpreting polling results during periods of changing public sentiment. Its historical work also extended beyond the United States; in 1970, Harris acquired Humphrey Taylor's firm. Taylor was a prominent British strategist and pollster who later worked with the Conservative Party and Margaret Thatcher. The corporate identity behind the poll changed several times. Louis Harris retired from Louis Harris & Associates in January 1992 and established a second enterprise, LH Associates. The original business, which was then owned by Gannett, was acquired by the Gordon S. Black Corporation in 1996. Gordon S. Black Corporation became Harris Black International Ltd. in 1997 and transformed into the publicly traded Harris Interactive in 1999. The Harris Poll continued as a recognizable polling name through those ownership and corporate-name changes. Nielsen acquired the business in 2014. In 2017, Stagwell Group acquired The Harris Poll and the associated polling business from Nielsen and took the operation private. Stagwell relaunched the research company as Harris Insights & Analytics while retaining The Harris Poll name for the established polling brand. Following the relaunch, John Gerzema and Will Johnson were brought in as co-chief executive officers. The organization has been described as combining traditional research and consulting with software-based data platforms that enable clients to monitor brand health, campaign performance, and other measures over time. The Harris Poll's work covers public-opinion measurement, brand and reputation research, consumer insight, behavioral analysis, consulting, and data products. Its recurring research is intended to help organizations understand what American adults think and do, while its analytics offerings support tracking rather than merely providing a single research snapshot. The brand is also associated with the monthly Harvard–Harris Poll, produced through a partnership involving The Harris Poll, HarrisX, and Harvard University's Center for American Political Studies. The organization is headquartered in Chicago and New York City and has additional offices in Washington, D.C., and Rochester, New York. It remains active as a research and analytics brand under Stagwell, with a public-facing identity centered on the measurement of American sentiment and a commercial offering directed at organizations seeking polling, market intelligence, and campaign or brand evaluation.
History
The Harris Poll emerged from the research enterprise founded by Louis Harris. In 1956, Harris established Louis Harris & Associates, a market-research and opinion-polling firm. The organization gained national political visibility when Harris worked for John F. Kennedy's presidential campaign in 1960. This association made the firm an early example of a professional polling operation serving a presidential campaign, but the later Harris Poll was designed to have a broader and continuing purpose: to measure public opinion over time. Harris began The Harris Poll in 1963. Its surveys became a recurring record of the views, expectations, and behavior of American adults. Over the years, the poll was used to interpret changes in public sentiment and to inform leaders during periods of political and social transition. The wider business also developed expertise in commercial market research and consulting. In 1970, Louis Harris acquired the firm of Humphrey Taylor. Taylor was a notable British political strategist and pollster whose later work included research for the Conservative Party and Margaret Thatcher, giving the business an additional connection to United Kingdom polling. The company's corporate ownership changed after Louis Harris's active period. In January 1992, at age 70, Harris retired from Louis Harris & Associates, which was then owned by Gannett Corporation, and formed LH Associates. The original company and the polling brand were acquired by the Gordon S. Black Corporation in 1996. In 1997, that corporation became Harris Black International Ltd. Two years later, the company became Harris Interactive, a public company. Through these changes, The Harris Poll continued as the name of the established opinion-research franchise even as the parent organization adopted different corporate identities. Nielsen acquired the business in 2014. In 2017, Stagwell Group purchased The Harris Poll and the related polling company from Nielsen and took the operation private. Stagwell relaunched the research company as Harris Insights & Analytics. The relaunch was intended to preserve the established Harris Poll identity while supporting a wider combination of polling, consulting, market intelligence, and analytics services. John Gerzema and Will Johnson were appointed co-chief executive officers in connection with the Stagwell relaunch. Mark Penn, the founder and managing director of Stagwell, was identified in the same corporate context as chairman and chief executive officer of MDC Partners. In its contemporary form, The Harris Poll operates as both a public-facing survey brand and part of a business-to-business research and analytics operation. Its activities include public-opinion research, consumer and behavioral studies, brand and reputation measurement, campaign evaluation, and advisory work. The organization has also developed software and data platforms that allow clients to monitor brand health and assess the performance of campaigns over time. This expands the brand beyond the publication of individual poll results toward continuing measurement and decision support. The monthly Harvard–Harris Poll represents an important collaborative strand of the brand's public-opinion work. It is produced through a partnership involving The Harris Poll, HarrisX, and Harvard University's Center for American Political Studies. The organization is based in Chicago and New York City, with additional offices in Washington, D.C., and Rochester, New York. Its history therefore combines a durable polling name, repeated corporate transitions, and an ongoing effort to connect opinion measurement with commercial analytics and consulting.
- 2017
Stagwell acquires and relaunches the operation
[1]Stagwell Group acquired the business from Nielsen, took it private, and relaunched the research company as Harris Insights & Analytics while maintaining The Harris Poll brand.
- 2014
Nielsen acquires the business
[1]Nielsen acquired the Harris polling and research operation.
- 1999
Harris Interactive becomes a public company
[1]Harris Black International became Harris Interactive and operated as a publicly traded company.
- 1997
The owner becomes Harris Black International
[1]The Gordon S. Black Corporation adopted the Harris Black International Ltd. name.
- 1996
Gordon S. Black Corporation acquires the business
[1]The original business and associated polling brand were acquired by the Gordon S. Black Corporation.
- 1992
Louis Harris retires from Louis Harris & Associates
[1]Louis Harris retired from the original firm and established LH Associates while the Gannett-owned business continued under new corporate ownership.
- 1970
Humphrey Taylor's firm is acquired
[1]Louis Harris acquired Humphrey Taylor's firm, broadening the business's polling capabilities and international connections.
- 1963
The Harris Poll begins
[1]Louis Harris launched The Harris Poll as an ongoing measure of American public opinion.
- 1960
Louis Harris works on John F. Kennedy's presidential campaign
[1]Louis Harris conducted polling for John F. Kennedy's campaign, helping establish the firm's profile in presidential election research.
- 1956
Louis Harris establishes Louis Harris & Associates
[1]Louis Harris founded the market-research and opinion-polling firm that later provided the corporate and professional foundation for The Harris Poll.
Products and positioning
A long-established public-opinion and market-research brand that combines recurring polling with commercial consulting, brand measurement, and data-platform capabilities.
Public-opinion polling · 1963
The Harris Poll
The Harris Poll is the brand's recurring public-opinion survey and its best-known public-facing offering. Begun by Louis Harris in 1963, it was designed to provide a continuing view of American adults' opinions rather than a single election-period measurement. Its subject matter has encompassed sentiment, behavior, and motivations, while the broader organization has used polling to help leaders and institutions understand periods of political and social change.
Collaborative public-opinion survey
Harvard–Harris Poll
The Harvard–Harris Poll is a monthly survey produced through a partnership involving The Harris Poll, HarrisX, and Harvard University's Center for American Political Studies. It extends the brand's public-opinion role through a recurring collaboration focused on measuring current attitudes and political sentiment.
Analytics and measurement
Brand and campaign tracking
The Harris organization offers research and software-enabled measurement intended to help brands monitor health and evaluate campaign success. These services move beyond a one-time survey by supporting repeated tracking of awareness, attitudes, behavior, and campaign performance.
Research consulting
Market research and consulting
The business provides traditional market-research and consulting services alongside public polling. Its scope includes consumer and behavioral insight, reputation and brand research, and interpretation of survey data for organizations seeking to make decisions in changing markets or public environments.
Brand decisions
2017
Stagwell acquisition and private relaunchM&ABackground
Stagwell acquired The Harris Poll and the associated polling company from Nielsen.
Action taken
Stagwell took the operation private, relaunched the research company as Harris Insights & Analytics, and retained The Harris Poll name.
Aftermath
The organization continued as a polling, research, consulting, and analytics business, with John Gerzema and Will Johnson appointed co-chief executive officers in connection with the relaunch.
2014
Sale to NielsenM&ABackground
The Harris polling and research operation was acquired after its period as Harris Interactive.
Action taken
Nielsen acquired the business.
Aftermath
The business remained under Nielsen until its acquisition by Stagwell in 2017.
1999
Adoption of the Harris Interactive identityStrategyBackground
After the business became Harris Black International Ltd. in 1997, its corporate identity was changed again as the organization developed its research and polling operations.
Action taken
The company became Harris Interactive and operated as a public company, while The Harris Poll remained the continuing polling brand.
Aftermath
The Harris name continued through the corporate rebranding and subsequent ownership transitions.
Recent events
- 2017
Stagwell acquires and relaunches The Harris Poll[1]
M&A · Leadership change · Other
Stagwell Group acquired the business from Nielsen, took it private, and relaunched the research operation as Harris Insights & Analytics while retaining The Harris Poll name.
- 2014
Nielsen acquires the Harris business[1]
M&A
Nielsen became the owner of the polling and research business before its subsequent sale to Stagwell.
- 1999
The Harris business becomes Harris Interactive[1]
Other
Following earlier ownership and corporate-identity changes, Harris Black International became the publicly traded Harris Interactive.
- 1970
Harris acquires Humphrey Taylor's firm[1]
M&A
Louis Harris acquired Humphrey Taylor's polling firm, extending the business's research activities into an additional international and political-polling context.
- 1963
The Harris Poll is established as a continuing measure of American public opinion[1]
Other
Louis Harris began The Harris Poll to provide an ongoing measure of public sentiment in the United States.
The Harvard–Harris Poll partnership continues as a monthly survey[1]
Other
The Harris Poll, HarrisX, and Harvard University's Center for American Political Studies collaborate on a recurring monthly public-opinion poll.
Sources1 sources
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