AAPC Announces 2021 Pollie Award Winners

Political advertising’s largest and most prestigious Awards program has record-breaking year

McLean, Virginia (April 29, 2021) – The American Association of Political Consultants (AAPC) today announced the winners of the 2021 Pollie Awards, the premier awards competition for the political advertising industry. This cycle, over 400 firms submitted a record-breaking 2,700+ entries across 10 mediums, including television, digital, direct mail/print, radio and phones. Despite the large number of entries from this historic cycle, given AAPC’s stringent standards for trophy eligibility, only 6% of entries earned Pollie Gold, the industry’s top honor.

The 2021 Contest also featured a new Regional division, recognizing local and state level (non-federal) campaigns across four regions of the United States. With over 600 entries submitted to the inaugural Regional program, 223 entries recognized for having won at the regional level advanced to the finals. Ultimately, 17 regional Pollie entries were additionally awarded a Gold Pollie award and national recognition.

“2020 was the most challenging year in our lifetimes - for our country, our families and our work. Political consultants experimented, innovated and delivered for their clients," said Rose Kapolczynski, AAPC President. “The record-breaking number of entries demonstrates that competition was tough in an election cycle that saw more money raised for campaigns than ever before. While the work might have been done at the kitchen table, with dogs barking in the background and a video chat that wouldn’t end, consultants made it happen for campaigns at every level. Huge congratulations to all the winners for being recognized for their contributions.”

Strother Nuckels Strategies, a Democratic media firm based in Washington, D.C. took home the most Pollie wins at 15 while The Strategy Group Company headquartered in Delaware, commanded the top spot among Republican firms with 11 wins. At the Regional level, Los Angeles-based J & Z Strategies led Democratic firms with 12 honors while FP1 Strategies, based out of Arlington, Virginia, topped fellow Republican firms with 8 wins.

“The Pollie Contest could not have been a success without the help of more than 220 AAPC members who volunteered to serve as judges,” said Becki Donatelli, AAPC Vice President. “In addition to evaluating the political effectiveness and execution of each piece, our judges assessed whether or not each entry met AAPC’s higher standards on citations and the requirements of AAPC’s Professional Code of Ethics. We sincerely appreciate all of our judges who help to uphold AAPC’s values.”

About the Pollie Awards

The Pollie Awards (Pollies) are bipartisan honors awarded annually by the American Association of Political Consultants (AAPC) to members of the political advertising and communications industry who have demonstrated superior work on behalf of their candidates and causes. A blind jury of their professional peers selects AAPC award winners. Esquire magazine has dubbed the Pollies“…the Oscars of political advertising.”

The full list of 2021 Pollie Contest winners can be found in the 2021 Winners Book, and the winning work can be viewed in the 2021 Pollie Gallery.

About AAPC

Founded in 1969, the AAPC is a multi-partisan organization of political and public affairs professionals dedicated to improving democracy. The AAPC has over 1,500 members hailing from all corners of the globe. It is the largest association of political and public affairs professionals in the world. For more information, see www.theaapc.org.

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