About Us
American Strategies is a national opinion research and political advisory firm specializing in development, housing, and economic issues.
Our Mission
We help our clients support the policies and candidates that enable greater economic opportunities and more affordable communities.
Our Team
Joe Goode
CEO
Joe Goode is the Chief Executive Officer of American Strategies. Joe conducts public opinion surveys and provides strategic advice for trade associations, non-profit organizations and corporations. He has worked for and advised political organizations and campaigns for more than thirty years as a pollster, consultant and executive. Joe has worked closely with the National Association of REALTORS® since 2007, providing opinion research and consulting services in more than forty states and hundreds of localities – including successful constitutional amendment campaigns in Arizona, Florida, Louisiana, Missouri, Montana, North Dakota, Oregon and Texas. Joe helped design and implement the National Association of REALTORS® Campaign Services Program bringing state of the art campaign tools and data services to state and local REALTOR® associations. He also provides research for NAR’s Issues Mobilization committee and Smart Growth efforts.
Before coming to American Strategies, Joe was Chief Operating Officer at the polling firm Greenberg Quinlan Rosner. Earlier, he was the Senior Analyst on company CEO Stan Greenberg’s work for the Clinton for President campaign in 1992, managing the development and implementation of research conducted for the presidential primary and general election campaigns and the firm’s subsequent work for the Clinton administration. He has also worked as a Vice President at the polling firm Lake Research Partners; Campaign Manager and District Director for NC Congressman David Price; and Executive Director for Women’s Voices. Women Vote.
Sara Stephenson
President
Sara Stephenson has worked on polling and political campaigns for almost twenty years. She currently serves as Vice President of American Strategies, where she focuses on candidate and issue campaigns at the state and local level. Sara enjoys digging into the unique issues and personalities that shape our neighborhoods and quality of life. She has helped local leaders to pass school bond referendums and transit initiatives, and she has helped to elect more than two hundred city councilors, mayors and county commissioners across the country – in big cities like Los Angeles and Chicago to small towns like the one in Iowa where she grew up. At the state level, Sara has focused on budget and tax reform issues and helped to elect moderate legislators in highly partisan primaries.
Prior to joining American Strategies in 2011, Sara was a Senior Analyst at The Feldman Group, where she worked closely with candidates for state and federal office, progressive organizations, and labor unions. Sara has organized for campaigns ranging from the state legislature to the Iowa Caucuses to a general election presidential campaign. Her on-the-ground campaign work has taken her to Minnesota, Wisconsin, Washington State, and Louisiana. Sara is a native Iowan and holds both a B.A. in Sociology and a J.D. from the University of Iowa.
Sara lives in Saint Paul, Minnesota, with her husband and two young sons. She enjoys traveling and has recently visited Voyageurs National Park in Northern Minnesota, the Grand Canyon, and Hawaii.
Bill Simoneau, Director of Research and Analytics
Bill Simoneau is a Director of Research and Analytics with American Strategies where he focuses on candidate and issue campaigns at the state and local level. He has two master’s degrees in political science, one from Brooklyn College and a second from Washington University in Saint Louis. His research background concentrates on the application of advanced quantitative methods to best understand the story we learn from data, and how to use data visualization to best communicate that story.
Prior to American Strategies, Bill worked as a lecturer and researcher while working towards his masters at Washington University in Saint Louis. Research projects include the use of survey data to model elections, party policy positions, and the lasting effect of concentration camps on contemporary political views. Before that Bill worked as an analyst for Fortress Investment Group in his native New York. At Fortress, Bill gained almost a decade of experience in process and systems analysis before following his passion for politics and enrolling in graduate school.
Carolyn Westlake, Director of Data Management
Carolyn’s data driven outlook brought her to American Strategies in February of 2020 as a Data Reporting Specialist. Her previous work includes academic research in biomechanics, and market opinion surveys with a focus on data governance and process improvement. Carolyn holds two master’s degrees; one from University of Tennessee (Kinesiology) and one from Clarkson University (Data Analytics). Her appetite for adventure led her to visit all 48 contiguous U.S. states by motorcycle. Now, when she’s not digging around in the data, Carolyn enjoys a good puzzle, be it jigsaw or sudoku.
Sonja Bingham, Senior Analyst
Sonja Litster joined the American Strategies team in March of 2022 where she is a Senior Research Analyst. Sonja graduated from Brigham Young University – Idaho with a B.A. in Art. Before coming to American Strategies, she worked at a political consulting firm in Washington DC for over 4 years where she discovered the excitement of the political world as she planned focus groups and conducted survey research. She learned how to write questionnaires, analyze data and build aesthetically pleasing presentations. She grew up living all over the country including California, Utah, and Missouri but lives in Phoenix, Arizona now and is loving year-round summer. She continues to do Art and is trying to perfect her Spanish.
Jasom Al-Adsani, Research Analyst
Jasom joined American Strategies in August of 2021 as a Data Reporting Specialist. Previously, he worked as a Field Organizer for the Colorado Democrats. He holds a Bachelor’s in political science and philosophy from Grinnell College and a Master’s in political science from Columbia University. In his free time, he is either cooking something too spicy or listening to Terry Pratchett and philosophy podcasts while on a run.
Clement Lupton, Research Analyst
After graduating from George Mason University with a B.A. in Government and International Politics, Clement joined the American Strategies team in August 2020. He currently serves as a Junior Research Analyst and within his role he ensures that the data received from polling is accurate as well as representative through a variety of modes including FIQs, banner books, presentations, survey designs, and more. Clement is an avid sports fan as well as a Philadelphia native, and in his free time he loves to watch his Philadelphia sports teams.
Jana Ehlert, Research Analyst
Jana joined the American Strategies team in June 2023 as a Research Analyst. Previously, she worked on the polling and analytics team at Priorities USA, as a Call Time Manager on a Wisconsin Senate campaign, and as a Field Organizer for the Democratic Party of Wisconsin. Jana graduated from Marquette University in 2020 after majoring in political science, economics, and international affairs. Originally from Seattle, she now lives in Chicago and enjoys cooking vegetarian meals and practicing hot yoga.
Quinn He, Data Reporting Specialist
Quinn He joined the American Strategies team in July of 2023, and currently serves as a Data Reporting Specialist. After completing his BA in English in 2021, Quinn earned his MS in Data Analytics and Computational Social Science from the University of Massachusetts Amherst in 2023. His main projects consisted of predicting housing prices with machine learning, social network analysis, and creating a dashboard to analyze admissions data for the graduate program. When Quinn is not at work he can be found biking, playing guitar, or on a walk.
Our Partners
The TARA Group is a holding company with a diverse portfolio of subsidiaries, which all harness the power of industry-best data, cutting-edge technology, unparalleled expertise, and trusted relationships to help their clients stay at the forefront of public affairs and advocacy.
REAL Strategies is a data-driven communications, technology and campaign consulting firm that specializes in finding effective and creative solutions for our clients.
ACCESS is a unique creative agency that builds highly targeted campaigns across direct mail, TV, phone, radio, and digital media to reach audiences where they are.
STATARA works to help clients leverage state-of-the-art data, analytics, and communication technologies to find new pathways for growth, drive sales, engage audiences, and advertise effectively.