WHO WE ARE
Anchor Research is a public opinion research company headquartered in Nashville, TN.
Providing A Strategic Roadmap to Victory
Polling is much more than just determining who is winning or losing a race. At Anchor Research we poll to learn how a particular candidate can win, or how a specific issue can garner support. We provide a strategic road map to victory.
Ward Baker
Ward is a Founding Partner and President at Anchor Research. Ward is involved with the execution and analysis of all survey research projects. Ward has been intimately involved with hundreds of survey research projects over his career.
Ward is the Founder and President of Baker Group Strategies. Most recently, Ward served as senior advisor to the first Tennessee female Senator, Marsha Blackburn, in her bid for the U.S. Senate; delivering an 11-point victory and winning 92 of Tennessee’s 95 counties. Baker was previously executive director of the NRSC, the National Republican Senatorial Committee. As executive director, he was credited with helping Republicans hold the Senate Majority with 52 seats. NRSC Chairman, Senator Roger Wicker said of the 2016 victory, “hiring Ward was one of the best political decisions I’ve ever made”.
Ward played an indispensable role in winning this majority in 2014 as NRSC’s political director. Republicans gained nine Senate seats under his leadership, the largest wave by either party since 1980. During his tenure as political director, Baker organized what Senate Majority Leader McConnell has called one of the best recruiting classes of his lifetime.
Ward has served as an advisor to over forty members of Congress and statewide elected officials including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Senator Marsha Blackburn, Senator Deb Fisher, Senator John Barrasso, Senator Cory Gardner, Senator Rob Portman, Senator Roger Wicker, Senator Jerry Moran, and Senator Pat Toomey. During the 2012 presidential election cycle, he was a senior advisor to Romney For President.
Ward has a wealth of experience running Victory programs and independent expenditure campaigns. He served as a senior political advisor to Governor Rick Scott’s 2010 campaign, the Republican State Legislative Committee, the Bush-Cheney ‘04 campaign in Florida, and Haley Barbour’s successful 2003 gubernatorial campaign in Mississippi. Ward and his wife Jennifer have one daughter, Lillian.
Peter Lifson
Peter serves as the Chief Pollster at Anchor Research. Peter is responsible for constructing all survey instruments, ensuring sound methodology, executing the survey, and then providing analysis based on the results. Peter works with clients on strategic recommendations to provide them with a roadmap to victory.
Peter also serves as the Director of Data & Analytics at Baker Group Strategies where he provides in-depth strategic analysis of all research and oversees all client data and targeting.
During the 2014 election cycle, Peter worked at Public Opinion Strategies, a national political and public affairs research firm, where he helped provide analysis on research projects for some of the most competitive political campaigns and independent expenditure efforts in the country.
Peter worked at the NRSC as a Regional Finance Coordinator, where he was part of the team that helped Republicans hold the Senate Majority with 52 seats during the 2016 election cycle.
Peter currently lives in Nashville, TN.