Spring 2020 Fellow
Dr. David Hill is the Director of Hill Research Consultants, a full-service public opinion and marketing research firm established in 1988. Hill is also the Senior Research Advisor for the EV Politics Project, a bipartisan effort to better understand the growing divide between Republicans, Democrats, and Independents over Electric Vehicle adoption. A leading pollster and research-based strategist, Hill is an author as well, writing published works such as The Electoral Challenge: Theory Meets Practice (2010) and Election Demographics, Population Trends and Public Policy (1988).
Over the course of his career, Hill has served numerous top Republican candidates across the nation, including over a dozen United States senators and governors. He has also served members of Congress, state legislators, political parties, and more, including former Vice President Dan Quayle, Florida’s first Hispanic Governor Bob Martinez and U.S. Senator Mel Martinez, as well as former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, and former North Carolina Senator Elizabeth Dole, among others. In addition, Hill has polled for more than 100 successful ballot measures across the nation, from Alaska to Florida. Hill’s research has been instrumental in the passage of six amendments to the state of Florida’s constitution which includes Florida Amendment 4 which provides youth in the state with education about the use of tobacco, and Amendment 6 that banned smoking in restaurants and most bars. He has also polled and conducted focus groups for winning tax referenda initiatives in a dozen states, including a sales tax in Michigan that was the state’s largest tax hike ever.
Hill’s work also transcends the political world, as Fortune 100 and top-tier governmental and non-governmental organizations have sought his research skills. He had directed research projects for, among others, Facebook, Time-Warner Cable, Google, the American Cancer Society, The Humane Society of the United States, the Trust for Public Land, state regulatory agencies, and professional sports teams including the NBA’s Miami Heat and Dallas Mavericks, and the NFL’s Detroit Lions, Tennessee Titans, and Denver Broncos.
Hill is a former faculty member at Texas A&M University. He received his Ph.D. from Florida State University and completed his post-doctoral study at the University of Michigan’s Survey Research Center.
Dr. Hill lives in Auburn, Alabama.
Course: Understanding Political Culture’s Role in Campaign Messaging
This course focuses on the role political culture plays in American politics, especially in framing political narrative and campaign messaging. Drawing on a wide range of insights, the course reveals the forces that have created and maintained a “disunited states of America.” The instructor reveals the ways and means that campaign consultants leverage knowledge of political cultures to craft effective messaging. The final sessions of the course presents an entirely new perspective on how the psychological concept of self-esteem influences the prevailing political narratives of various political cultures.
Describing his time at USC, Dr. David Hill said, “This was an ideal time for me to be a Fellow, given the lively Democratic primary process and my interest in public opinion and voting behavior. The many election-related events sponsored by the Center and its partners at USC were terrific, highlighted by the Pete Buttigieg appearance and the Super Tuesday forum. I benefited from listening to other Fellows, guest speakers, and CPF staff this term.”
Spring 2020 Semester Recap
Camilo Daza Manga, a sophomore majoring in Political Science and International Relations, said,
“The course was exceptionally in-depth and it was phenomenal to learn from Hill’s extensive experience. The topics that we covered were wide-ranging, but my favorite was the comparative section we did on Republican and Democratic framing and messaging.”
Manga discussed an assignment the class was given, “I absolutely have to mention the project Hill assigned, wherein we were able to draft a statement of candidacy that linked to political culture. I chose Pennsylvania House District 28, since we had covered it in class due to its unique nature. It was interesting analyzing the political culture of a district that I had no connection to and producing a statement of candidacy.”
When asked about his favorite elements of the fellowship, Hill explained, “I was especially delighted to see and interact with the diversity of attendees at ‘Politics & Pizza’ and other campus wide forums. Not only did we have a good mix of domestic and international students, but many faculty from other departments, staff members, and even some alumni joined the conversations. I thought it reflected so well on the institution that a former student would continue to feel so engaged with his alma mater.”
Thank you David for an incredible semester!
Dr. Hill shared his thoughts on the importance of politics, his first political experience, and his advice for having respectful political discourse in his “Quick Takes: Q&A with CPF Fellow Dr. David Hill” video.