The Deciders Focus Groups project is a partnership between the Institute for Democracy, Journalism and Citizenship (IDJC), Engagious/Sago, in collaboration with NBC News.
In 2024, monthly focus group sessions occurred with key voting blocs from battleground states. Each session covered a central issue with a demographic group that likely determined the outcome of the presidential election. The project provided students and the public with insights into newsgathering, civic engagement, and media literacy, helping them understand what mattered most to voters during the election cycle.
In 2025, four distinct groups of voters from the 2024 elevtion battleground states will be part of four focus group dates. Questions examine participants’ views toward governance by the new administration as well as issues, leaders, democracy and news habits and trust. The project will help students as well as the public to learn about newsgathering, civic engagement and media literacy.
Reporting appears on Meet the Press NOW, NBC News NOW, MSNBC and on NBCNews.com.
In the News
March 28, 2025 | NBC News
Margaret Talev — director of Syracuse University’s Institute for Democracy, Journalism and Citizenship, which leads the focus group project in partnership with Engagious/Sago — told NBC News that the group showed that “whether their embrace now of President Trump or Elon Musk is strong or conditional, they are united in their mistrust of and disappointment with Democrats as the alternative” and represent the “deep disillusionment of some male voters of color with the Democratic Party.”
October 30, 2024 | NBC News
“These voters show us two camps of Nikki Haley backers: those so turned off by former President Trump that they’ll vote third-party, stay home or even vote for Vice President Harris to keep Trump out of the White House, and those who will hold their nose and vote Trump because he’s the Republican nominee and they’re Republicans,” said Margaret Talev, the director of Syracuse University’s Institute for Democracy, Journalism & Citizenship in Washington.
October 25, 2024 | NBC News
Margaret Talev, the director of Syracuse University’s Institute for Democracy, Journalism & Citizenship in Washington, said, “One recurring theme among these voters was the idea that Vice President Harris either hasn’t demonstrated she can wield political power or that they believe other people won’t give a female president the same trust as a male president so that she inherently won’t be able to govern as well as Trump and that could impact national security or her ability to accomplish anything.”
September 26, 2024 | NBC News
“These younger men, especially those leaning toward Trump, reflect an indifference to or rejection of traditional news sources in fact-checking claims ahead of voting. Seeing an unverified claim or meme somewhere on X may end up being a determinative data point for some if they do cast a ballot,” said Margaret Talev, the director of Syracuse University’s Institute for Democracy, Journalism & Citizenship in Washington.
August 29, 2024 | NBC News
“Our conversations with these skeptics suggest Vice President Harris’ best path to win them over is through amplifying women’s reproductive rights as a key issue,” said Margaret Talev, the director of Syracuse University’s Institute for Democracy, Journalism and Citizenship in Washington and a partner in the focus group project. “Otherwise, many who say they don’t really know what she stands for — or what distinguishes her from President Biden — defaulted to former President Trump because they miss their pre-Covid personal finances, or said he better secured the border.”
July 25, 2024 | NBC News
“Harris would have real challenges winning over most of these former Haley voters. They overwhelmingly questioned her readiness for the job despite her three and a half years as vice president,” said Margaret Talev, director of Syracuse University’s Institute for Democracy, Journalism & Citizenship in Washington.
June 26, 2024 | NBC News
“These voters were really angry RFK won’t be on the debate stage and saw it as a collusion between the major parties and mainstream media,” Talev said. “Several believe his independence from both parties makes him more likely to make or get deals. In 2008, [Barack] Obama was the outsider. In 2016 Trump was the outsider. These voters see RFK as this year’s version of that.”
May 23, 2024 | NBC News
Margaret Talev: “They view Biden as failing to take actions at the border — and they credit Trump with trying to take action even if they disagreed with many of the actions themselves. Trump’s promise to build a wall between the U.S. and Mexico may be his best known plan — these voters panned the idea and don’t want him to try again if he’s re-elected — yet they don’t hold it against him.”
May 2, 2024 | NBC News
Margaret Talev: Several of these young voters said outright that Biden’s signing of a law that could lead to TikTok being banned in the U.S. could make them less likely to vote for him — and some said if Trump protected their TikTok access, that might sway them to support him.
April 4, 2024 | NBC News
Margaret Talev: It may largely be a rationalization or picking up on talking points by union voters who already prefer Trump. But talking about being pro-worker also may resonate more broadly in this era of increased focus on the individual and decreased faith in institutions.
February 29, 2024 | NBC News
Margaret Talev: President Biden’s challenges in getting these voters to show up for him boil down to three Cs: communication, confidence and credibility.
February 1, 2024 | NBC News
Focus groups illustrate how a set of female Pennsylvania voters who backed Trump in 2020 are weighing abortion and other issues in their 2024 choice.
