Mark Penn

Penn was born in New York City and raised in Riverdale. His father, a Lithuanian immigrant, was a kosher poultry-plant owner,{{cite news |last1=Bumiller |first1=Elisabeth |author1-link=Elisabeth Bumiller |title=Taking Pulse of the President's Pulse-Takers |url=http://www.nytimes.com/1998/02/11/nyregion/public-lives-taking-pulse-of-the-president-s-pulse-takers.html |access-date=22 August 2024 |work=The New York Times |date=February 11, 1998 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150527081322/http://www.nytimes.com/1998/02/11/nyregion/public-lives-taking-pulse-of-the-president-s-pulse-takers.html |archive-date=May 27, 2015}} who died when Penn was 10 years old.{{Cite web |first=Cole |last=Moreton |date=December 7, 2008 |title=Mark Penn: The man who blew the presidency |url=http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/profiles/mark-penn-the-man-who-blew-the-presidency-1055699.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220523182005/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/profiles/mark-penn-the-man-who-blew-the-presidency-1055699.html |archive-date=May 23, 2022 |access-date=December 7, 2020 |website=The Independent |language=en}} He was raised by his mother Blanche, who worked as a schoolteacher.{{cite news |title=Hillary Clinton's top political strategist no stranger to turmoil in a campaign |url=https://www.nydailynews.com/2007/12/18/hillary-clintons-top-political-strategist-no-stranger-to-turmoil-in-a-campaign/ |access-date=22 August 2024 |work=New York Daily News |date=December 18, 2007}} Both of his brothers credit Penn with keeping the family together after their father's death.{{cite web |last=Horowitz |first=Jason |date=August 2007 |title=Rumpled Mark Penn, Clinton Pollster, Goes Back to Battle |url=https://observer.com/2007/08/rumpled-mark-penn-clinton-pollster-goes-back-to-battle/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221205184309/https://observer.com/2007/08/rumpled-mark-penn-clinton-pollster-goes-back-to-battle/ |archive-date=December 5, 2022 |website=The New York Observer}} Penn graduated from Horace Mann School in New York City in 1972. He conducted his first poll, which determined that the Horace Mann faculty was more liberal than was the country at large on the issue of civil rights, when he was 13,{{cite news |last=Bennet |first=James |date=June 18, 2000 |title=The Guru of Small Things |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2000/06/18/magazine/the-guru-of-small-things.html |access-date=May 12, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221205153125/https://www.nytimes.com/2000/06/18/magazine/the-guru-of-small-things.html |archive-date=December 5, 2022}} as well as polling classmates about sex and drugs.{{cite web |last1=Bonilla |first1=Brian |title=The Outsider |url=https://adage.com/article/agency-news/mark-penn-building-stagwell-his-political-and-polling-background/2464061 |website=Advertising Age |date=January 24, 2023 |access-date=October 17, 2023}}

Penn entered Harvard University in 1972. According to his brother, Penn was initially rejected, but he was able to get Harvard's dean to reverse the decision after taking the train to Boston and arguing his case. At Harvard, Penn majored in political science and, as a city editor of the Harvard Crimson, wrote and reported 90 articles.{{cite news |title=Mark J. Penn - Writer Page |url=https://www.thecrimson.com/writer/2117/Mark_J._Penn/ |access-date=22 August 2024 |work=The Harvard Crimson}} His work for the paper included reporting and analysis on buying a stereo,{{cite news |last1=Penn |first1=Mark J. |title=Your Stereo Is Only As Good as the Speakers |url=https://www.thecrimson.com/article/1973/12/8/your-stereo-is-only-as-good/ |access-date=22 August 2024 |work=The Harvard Crimson |date=December 8, 1973}} the Cambridge City Council elections of 1975,{{cite web |last=Penn |first=Mark J. |date=November 5, 1975 |title=High Cambridge Voter Turnout May Indicate Liberal Victory |url=http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=327019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141022184526/http://www.thecrimson.com/article/1975/11/5/high-cambridge-voter-turnout-may-indicate/ |archive-date=October 22, 2014 |work=The Harvard Crimson}} the Harvard admission process,{{cite web |last1=Penn |first1=Mark J. |last2=Ingber |first2=Audrey H. |date=April 24, 1975 |title=The Admissions Process |url=http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=496039 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141022184523/http://www.thecrimson.com/article/1975/4/24/the-admissions-process-target-figures-profiles/ |archive-date=October 22, 2014 |work=The Harvard Crimson}} and the controversy over the proposed construction in Cambridge of the John F. Kennedy Library.{{cite web |last=Penn |first=Mark J. |date=January 7, 1975 |title=Environmental Study Says JFK Library Will Have Minimal Impact on Square |url=http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=345659 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141022184521/http://www.thecrimson.com/article/1975/1/7/environmental-study-says-jfk-library-will/ |archive-date=October 22, 2014 |work=The Harvard Crimson}}{{cite web |last1=Lazar |first1=Samantha |title=How I got here: Mark Penn |url=https://phhstrailblazer.org/college-corner/2020/12/02/how-i-got-here-mark-penn/ |website=The Trailblazer |publisher=Pascack Hills High School |access-date=22 August 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201204022239/https://phhstrailblazer.org/college-corner/2020/12/02/how-i-got-here-mark-penn/ |archive-date=December 4, 2020 |date=December 2, 2020}} With Doug Schoen, who he attended Horace Mann School with, Penn co-founded Penn & Schoen – now the global market research firm Penn, Schoen & Berland Associates – in their dorm room.{{cite news |last=Charter |first=David |date=February 25, 2006 |title='The Most Important Man in Washington (You've Never Heard Of) |work=The Times Magazine |location=London}} He graduated from Harvard in 1976.* {{cite news |last1=Gajarawala |first1=Ryan N. |last2=Liang |first2=Andrew W. |last3=Zwickel |first3=Samuel W. |date=April 10, 2021 |title=Crimson Connections: Mark J. Penn '76 and Doug E. Schoen '74 |url=https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2021/4/10/penn-schoen-ccvideo/ |access-date=22 August 2024 |work=The Harvard Crimson |quote=Filmed December 10, 2020. Hosted by Andrew W. Liang and Samuel W. Zwickel. Edited by Ryan N. Gajarawala.}}

• {{cite web |date=December 10, 2020 |title=Crimson Connections: Mark J. Penn '76 and Doug E. Schoen '74 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rupsbC2Xpss |access-date=22 August 2024 |publisher=The Harvard Crimson |via=YouTube |quote=uploaded 9 April 2021. Filmed December 10, 2020. Hosted by Andrew W. Liang and Samuel W. Zwickel. Edited by Ryan N. Gajarawala.}}

While Penn was a first-year law student at Columbia University in 1976, he and his business partner Douglas Schoen became the pollsters for congressman Ed Koch's second run for mayor of New York City. In 1977, with the campaign against Mario Cuomo for the Democratic nomination in full swing, Penn sought a way to conduct polls more quickly than the mainframe and punched card system he and Schoen were making use of at Columbia University. He purchased a self-assembled "microcomputer" kit and created a program that could compile polls in a fraction of the time than had been done before. By creating this "overnight poll" system, Penn allowed the campaign to conduct polls to determine messages and evaluate tactics on a daily basis, a tactical advantage that contributed to Koch's eventual victory over Cuomo.{{cite book |last=Schoen |first=Doug |authorlink=Douglas Schoen |title=The Power of the Vote |publisher=Harper Collins |location=New York City |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-06-123188-9 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/powerofvotee00scho }}

Penn also played a significant role in Koch's campaign during the 1985 New York City mayoral election, for which he and Schoen developed direct mailings,{{cite news |last=Lynn |first=Frank |date=August 17, 1985 |title=Koch Makes Big Push Through Mail |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1985/08/17/nyregion/koch-makes-big-push-through-mail.html |access-date=May 12, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221205222427/https://www.nytimes.com/1985/08/17/nyregion/koch-makes-big-push-through-mail.html |archive-date=December 5, 2022}} set up phone banks, organized volunteers and canvassers, and coordinated fundraising. That year, Koch won both the Democratic primary and the general election, defeating New York City Council President Carol Bellamy.{{cite news |last=Lynn |first=Frank |date=November 6, 1985 |title=Koch Wins a Third Term, 3 to 1 |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1985/11/06/nyregion/koch-wins-third-term-3-1-vows-combat-inequities-kean-easy-victor-jersey.html |access-date=May 12, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220622095512/https://www.nytimes.com/1985/11/06/nyregion/koch-wins-third-term-3-1-vows-combat-inequities-kean-easy-victor-jersey.html |archive-date=June 22, 2022}}

In 1978, Penn conducted polling for the presidential campaign of Luis Herrera Campins in Venezuela. Because Venezuela did not at that time have universal phone coverage, Penn partnered with Venezuelan polling firms to go door-to-door to collect interviews. He also helped the campaign develop the slogan "Ya Basta," or "Enough," critical of the incumbent party's spending policies. Herrera carried the election by about 3%.{{cite book |last1=Tarver |first1=H. Michael |last2=Frederick |first2=Julia C. |title=The History of Venezuela |publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group |location=Boston, Massachusetts |year=2005 |isbn=0-313-33525-7 |page=120 }}

The election marked the beginning of Penn's successful involvement in Latin American politics. Since 1979, Penn's firm has helped elect more than a half dozen heads of state in Latin America, including Venezuela's Carlos Andrés Pérez,{{cite news| last=Hagstrom| first=Jerry| work=National Journal| date = February 11, 1989| title=Political Consultants Are Looking South}} Belisario Betancur and Virgilio Barco Vargas of Colombia, and Leonel Fernández of the Dominican Republic.

In 1981, Penn & Schoen conducted polling for Menachem Begin's campaign for re-election as Prime Minister of Israel.{{cite news |last=Kornblut |first=Anne E. |authorlink=Anne Kornblut |date=April 30, 2007 |title=Clinton's PowerPointer |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/29/AR2007042901661_2.html |access-date=May 12, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081012204702/https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/29/AR2007042901661_2.html |archive-date=October 12, 2008}} When Begin called Penn in January 1981, public polling for the June parliamentary election showed that Begin's party, Likud, would lose the elections by a margin of 58 seats for the rival Labor Party to 20 seats for Begin's Likud party. A New York Times article published in March of that year stated that Begin was "probably in his final months as Prime Minister."{{cite news |last=Shipler |first=David K. |date=March 8, 1981 |title=Autonomy Plan For Palestinians Is Fading Away |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1981/03/08/world/autonomy-plan-for-palestinians-is-fading-away.html |access-date=May 12, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190709135111/https://www.nytimes.com/1981/03/08/world/autonomy-plan-for-palestinians-is-fading-away.html |archive-date=July 9, 2019}} Penn & Schoen applied the rapid polling techniques they had developed on Ed Koch's first campaign for mayor to provide Begin with a daily understanding of attitudes of the Israeli electorate. Ultimately, Begin defeated Labor, led by Shimon Peres, by 10,405 votes out of more than 1.5 million cast.{{cite news |date=July 10, 1981 |title=Official Israeli Election Tally Gives Victory to Likud Bloc |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1981/07/10/world/official-israeli-election-tally-gives-victory-to-likud-bloc.html |access-date=May 12, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612211311/https://www.nytimes.com/1981/07/10/world/official-israeli-election-tally-gives-victory-to-likud-bloc.html |archive-date=June 12, 2018}}

In the late 1980s, Penn was the force behind his firm's drive to win corporate consulting clients. Texaco, which was experiencing image problems due to bankruptcy after the Pennzoil v. Texaco court case, was the firm's first major corporate client.

In 1993, Penn, Schoen & Berland was engaged by AT&T's new advertising agency FCB to guide a response to the "Friends and Family" plan offered by MCI, a then-upstart competitor for AT&T's long-distance services. To help AT&T understand how best to counter MCI's strongest messages, Penn created the "mall testing" methodology for competitive advertising research. In the mall tests, Penn showed randomly selected mall shoppers MCI ads head-to-head with proposed new AT&T ads. Using this methodology, Penn's firm determined messages resulting in AT&T's "True" plan and its $200 million advertising campaign. As a result of this campaign, by the end of 1994, AT&T had signed up 14 million new long-distance customers.

Penn has been a strategic advisor to Bill Gates and Microsoft since the mid-1990s. Penn began working with Microsoft when the company faced antitrust litigation initiated by the U.S. Department of Justice. Penn also created the famous "blue sweater" advertisement that featured Gates, which were intended to restore trust in the company amid the antitrust litigation.{{Cite web |last=Jeffries |first=Adrianne |date=February 13, 2013 |title=Fighting dirty: Microsoft's mean 'Scroogled' ads are a sign of what's to come |url=https://www.theverge.com/2013/2/13/3984700/microsoft-negative-scroogled-ads-sign-of-things-to-come |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221205115400/http://www.theverge.com/2013/2/13/3984700/microsoft-negative-scroogled-ads-sign-of-things-to-come |archive-date=December 5, 2022 |access-date=May 4, 2019 |website=The Verge}} In 2006, a survey of global opinion leaders found that Microsoft was the world's most trusted company, an accomplishment which The Wall Street Journal partially attributed to Penn's advice.{{cite news| last=Murray| first=Alan | work=The Wall Street Journal| date = March 1, 2006| title=How Microsoft Rebooted its Reputation}}

His other corporate clients have included Ford Motor Company, Merck & Co., Verizon, BP, and McDonald's.{{cite web |title=Politico: Mark Penn Bio |url=http://www.politico.com/arena/bio/mark_penn.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090401170345/http://www.politico.com/arena/bio/mark_penn.html |archive-date=April 1, 2009 |website=Politico}}

In July 2012, Penn was named Corporate Vice President for Strategic and Special Projects at Microsoft Corporation. Shortly after he came on board, he began a public relations campaign against Google on behalf of Bing. Just in time for the holiday shopping season, he created a commercial in which Microsoft criticized Google for biasing its shopping search results with paid advertisements. "Don't get Scroogled", the commercial warned. In August 2013, Penn was named Executive Vice President for Advertising and Strategy. In that role, he pioneered Microsoft's "Honestly" campaign {{cite news |last=Miller |first=Mark J. |date=March 4, 2014 |title=Microsoft's Nadella Gets Down to Business with Marketing Shake-Up |newspaper=brandchannel |url=http://www.brandchannel.com/home/post/2014/03/04/140304-Microsoft-Marketing-Shakeup.aspx |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140315164108/http://www.brandchannel.com/home/post/2014/03/04/140304-Microsoft-Marketing-Shakeup.aspx |archive-date=March 15, 2014}}

and the award-winning Super Bowl 2014 ad "Empowering Us All".{{cite news |author=Wingfield |first=Nick |date=March 2, 2014 |title=Ex-Clinton Aide is Named Microsoft's Chief Strategy Officer |newspaper=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/03/business/mark-penn-ex-clinton-aide-moves-in-a-shake-up-at-microsoft.html?hpw&rref=technology&_r=0 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190302090706/https://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/03/business/mark-penn-ex-clinton-aide-moves-in-a-shake-up-at-microsoft.html?hpw&rref=technology&_r=0 |archive-date=March 2, 2019}} In March 2014, he was named executive vice president and chief strategy officer by chief executive officer Satya Nadella. On June 17, 2015, it was announced he would be leaving Microsoft.{{Cite web |last=Lerner |first=Adam B. |date=June 17, 2015 |title=Former Clinton aide Mark Penn leaving Microsoft |url=http://www.politico.com/story/2015/06/mark-penn-leaves-microsoft-for-stagwell-group-119106.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190303024244/https://www.politico.com/story/2015/06/mark-penn-leaves-microsoft-for-stagwell-group-119106 |archive-date=March 3, 2019 |access-date=July 17, 2015 |website=Politico}}

After leaving Microsoft, Penn founded The Stagwell Group, a private equity firm that invests in marketing services agencies with a $250 million investment from former Microsoft chief executive officer Steve Ballmer.{{Cite news |last=Boston |first=Claire |date=June 17, 2015 |title=Microsoft's Mark Penn Will Start Ballmer-Backed Investment Fund |language=en |work=Bloomberg.com |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-06-17/microsoft-s-mark-penn-will-start-ballmer-backed-investment-fund |access-date=April 29, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210501033749/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-06-17/microsoft-s-mark-penn-will-start-ballmer-backed-investment-fund |archive-date=May 1, 2021}}{{Cite web |date=June 17, 2015 |title=Mark Penn Announces Formation of The Stagwell Group LLC; will invest in advertising, research, data analytics, public relations and digital marketing services |url=http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/mark-penn-announces-formation-of-the-stagwell-group-llc-will-invest-in-advertising-research-data-analytics-public-relations-and-digital-marketing-services-300100682.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221203231231/https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/mark-penn-announces-formation-of-the-stagwell-group-llc-will-invest-in-advertising-research-data-analytics-public-relations-and-digital-marketing-services-300100682.html |archive-date=December 3, 2022 |access-date=July 17, 2015 |agency=PR Newswire |publisher=The Stagwell Group}}

In May 2016, Penn told The Wall Street Journal that he wanted to create a "more digitally-focused advertising holding group, made up of companies which do not overlap in function," and offer a "fully-integrated solution across the continuum of marketing services."{{Cite news |last=Tadena |first=Nathalie |date=May 12, 2016 |title=Mark Penn Is Out to Reinvent the Ad Holding Company |language=en-US |work=The Wall Street Journal |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/mark-penn-is-out-to-reinvent-the-ad-holding-company-1463082519 |access-date=April 29, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160514104907/https://www.wsj.com/articles/mark-penn-is-out-to-reinvent-the-ad-holding-company-1463082519 |archive-date=May 14, 2016 |issn=0099-9660}} In 2023, Penn stated that his "political background brings a much-needed perspective to marketing." He described his philosophy as that in today's real-time, data-focused world, brands must have a constant finger on the pulse of the American consumer.

In October 2015, Stagwell Group struck a deal worth up to $75 million to buy SKDKnickerbocker.{{cite news |last1=Pace |first1=Richard D |date=October 8, 2015 |title=SKD Knickerbocker Sells To Stagwell Group For Up To $75 Million Dollars |agency=EverythingPR |url=http://everything-pr.com/skd-knickerbocker-to-stagwell-group/69478/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304142747/http://everything-pr.com/skd-knickerbocker-to-stagwell-group/69478/ |archive-date=March 4, 2016}} In January 2017, the Stagwell Group acquired the Harris Poll from Nielsen Holdings and renamed it Harris Insights & Analytics.{{cite news |last1=Stein |first1=Lindsay |date=January 23, 2017 |title=Stagwell Group Acquires Nielsen's Harris Brand and Poll |website=Advertising Age |url=http://adage.com/article/agency-news/stagwell-group-acquires-nielsen-s-harris-brand-poll/307650/ |access-date=April 24, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170128050800/http://adage.com/article/agency-news/stagwell-group-acquires-nielsen-s-harris-brand-poll/307650/ |archive-date=January 28, 2017}} The firm has also acquired National Research Group, digital creative firm Code and Theory, media agency ForwardPMX, and marketing communications companies SKDK and Targeted Victory, among others.{{Cite web |last=Heilpern |first=Will |date=May 13, 2016 |title=How Hillary Clinton's former political adviser plans to take over the ad industry |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/mark-penns-disruption-of-the-ad-world-2016-5 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210501123513/https://www.businessinsider.com/mark-penns-disruption-of-the-ad-world-2016-5 |archive-date=May 1, 2021 |access-date=April 29, 2021 |website=Business Insider |language=en-US}}

In August 2021, Penn merged the Stagwell Group with MDC Partners to form Stagwell Inc. Stagwell (Nasdaq: STGW) has offices in 35 countries and over 13,000 employees with its headquarters in New York City.{{cite web |title=10-K Filing For the Fiscal Year Ended December 31, 2021 |url=https://app.quotemedia.com/data/downloadFiling?webmasterId=90423&ref=116559559&type=HTML&symbol=STGW&companyName=Stagwell+Inc.&formType=10-K&formDescription=Annual+report+pursuant+to+Section+13+or+15%28d%29&dateFiled=2022-03-17&CK=876883 |access-date=August 30, 2022}} Stagwell companies include GALE, Code and Theory, Harris Poll, Anomaly, Doner, Assembly, 72 and Sunny, etc. In February 2022, Penn announced the formation of the Stagwell Marketing Cloud.{{cite web |title=Stagwell posts nearly 15% organic growth in 2021 {{!}} Advertising |url=https://www.campaignasia.com/article/stagwell-posts-nearly-15-organic-growth-in-2021/476359 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220309184130/https://www.campaignasia.com/article/stagwell-posts-nearly-15-organic-growth-in-2021/476359 |archive-date=March 9, 2022 |access-date=March 30, 2022 |website=Campaign Asia}} Penn, alongside Victor Ganzi, Josh Harris, James Tisch, and Thomas Peterffy, contributed to a $50 million investment fund in The Messenger, a news website that launched in May 2023.{{cite web |last1=Fischer |first1=Sara |title=The Messenger to launch May 15 with 150 journalists |url=https://www.axios.com/2023/05/02/messenger-launch-may-150-journalists |website=Axios |access-date=May 21, 2023 |date=May 2, 2023}}{{cite web |last1=Mullin |first1=Benjamin |title=The Messenger, a Media Start-Up, Aims to Build a Newsroom Fast |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/10/business/media/the-messenger-jimmy-finkelstein.html |website=The New York Times |access-date=May 21, 2023 |date=March 10, 2023}} Stagwell entered the Fortune 1000 during Penn's tenure.{{cite web |last1=Ariens |first1=Chris |title=With Stagwell, Mark Penn Is Back in the Arena |url=https://www.adweek.com/agencies/with-stagwell-group-mark-penn-is-back-in-the-arena/ |website=www.adweek.com |access-date=October 17, 2023 |date=June 23, 2023}} As of summer 2023, Stagwell stock had more than tripled since Penn took the CEO role.

In 1994, President Bill Clinton hired Penn & Schoen to help his administration recover from the Democratic Party's dramatic losses during that year's midterm elections. The pollsters urged Clinton to move to the center, emphasizing stepped-up law enforcement, balancing the budget, and other issues.{{cite magazine|url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,985538,00.html|magazine=Time|date=November 18, 1996|access-date=May 12, 2010|title=Masters Of The Message|archive-date=January 12, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100112065600/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,985538,00.html|url-status=dead}}

Penn served as pollster to Clinton for six years. During that time, he became one of Clinton's most prominent and influential advisers. In 2000, the Washington Post concluded in a news analysis that no pollster had ever become "so thoroughly integrated into the policymaking operation" of a presidential administration as had Penn.{{cite news |last=Harris |first=John F. |date=December 31, 2000 |title=Policy and Politics by the Numbers |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/washingtonpost/access/65882116.html?dids=65882116:65882116&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&date=Dec+31%2C+2000&author=John+F.+Harris&pub=The+Washington+Post&edition=&startpage=A.01&desc=Policy+and+Politics+by+the+Numbers%3B+For+the+President%2C+Polls+Became+a+Defining+Force+in+His+Administration |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160306213657/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/washingtonpost/doc/409041379.html?FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Dec%2031,%202000&author=John%20F.%20Harris&pub=The%20Washington%20Post&edition=&startpage=A.01&desc=Policy%20and%20Politics%20by%20the%20Numbers;%20For%20the%20President,%20Polls%20Became%20a%20Defining%20Force%20in%20His%20Administration |archive-date=March 6, 2016}}

{{main|United States federal government shutdowns of 1995 and 1995–96}}

Beginning in August 1995, at Clinton's request, Penn conducted numerous polls to understand what the political ramifications would be if the federal government were to shut down over disagreement between the legislative and executive branches over the budget. Penn tested many different scenarios for Clinton, and in each case the research showed that the American public would back the President and blame Republicans if the government shut down. On November 14, 1995, with no budget signed, major portions of the federal government became inoperative. They were restored by the passage of a temporary spending bill a few days later, but on December 16, 1995, the federal government again shut down, this time for a period of 21 days. Ultimately, Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich and the Republican-controlled Congress bore much of the political fallout for the shutdown, vindicating Penn's polling.

During Clinton's 1996 reelection campaign, Penn used the mall tests he developed for AT&T to test presidential campaign ads. He also created the "NeuroPersonality Poll," a survey that blended standard political and demographic questions with lifestyle, attitudinal, and psychographic questions, some adapted from Myers-Briggs. Penn's 1996 Neuro Poll helped him identify a new swing voter: the "soccer mom." Previously, pollsters had thought that the defining voter variables were things such as age and income. But Penn argued that marital status was also a key defining variable. He found that the gap was even wider among voters with children at home: parents were 10–15 points more likely to lean Republican. Based on this analysis, Penn urged Clinton to focus on policies that appealed to suburban parents and to speak about these policies in terms of values rather than economics. He subsequently became famous for focusing on the "soccer mom", cited as the key swing vote that helped Clinton get reelected in 1996.{{cite web |last1=McFadden |first1=Cynthia |last2=Murphy |first2=Eileen |date=September 5, 2007 |title=Meet Clinton's 'Numbers Junkie' |url=https://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/Story?id=3561628&page=1 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221005102221/https://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/story?id=3561628&page=1 |archive-date=October 5, 2022 |website=ABC News}}

After the election, and for most of Clinton's second term, Penn and Schoen were hired to conduct 2–4 White House polls per month and met weekly with the President and the White House staff in the residence to review polls and policy ideas. These polls influenced Clinton's thinking and helped to refine his "new Democrat" language and policies that are one of his distinctive political contributions.

When allegations of Clinton's extramarital affair with Monica Lewinsky first surfaced in January 1998, Penn conducted polls to help the administration craft its response.{{cite news |last=Harris |first=John F. |date=January 26, 1998 |title=White House Assessing Damage; Advisers Urge Clinton to Publicly Repeat Denials of Affair |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/washingtonpost/access/25630670.html?dids=25630670:25630670&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&date=Jan+26%2C+1998&author=John+F.+Harris&pub=The+Washington+Post&edition=&startpage=A.01&desc=White+House+Assessing+Damage%3B+Advisers+Urge+Clinton+to+Publicly+Repeat+Denials+of+Affair |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160306211608/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/washingtonpost/doc/408351043.html?FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Jan%2026,%201998&author=John%20F.%20Harris&pub=The%20Washington%20Post&edition=&startpage=A.01&desc=White%20House%20Assessing%20Damage;%20Advisers%20Urge%20Clinton%20to%20Publicly%20Repeat%20Denials%20of%20Affair |archive-date=March 6, 2016}} Penn subsequently led the research effort monitoring Clinton's level of public support throughout the impeachment proceedings against him and until Clinton was acquitted on February 13, 1999.

In 2000, then-First Lady Hillary Clinton asked Penn to advise her on her run for the U.S. Senate from New York. During the campaign, tension brewed between Penn, who urged Clinton to focus on the issues, and other advisers, who urged Clinton to focus more on personality.{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2000/06/18/magazine/the-guru-of-small-things.html|work=The New York Times | first=James | last=Bennet | date=June 18, 2000 | access-date=May 12, 2010 | title=The Guru of Small Things}} Clinton followed Penn's advice and won the election. Penn served again as Clinton's pollster in her successful 2006 Senate reelection campaign.

Until April 6, 2008, he served as chief strategist to Hillary Clinton's campaign for president.{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/29/AR2007042901661.html?hpid=topnews|newspaper=The Washington Post | first=Anne E. | last=Kornblut | authorlink=Anne Kornblut | date=April 30, 2007 | access-date=May 12, 2010 | title=Clinton's PowerPointer}} Penn and his colleagues held differences of opinion over how much to "humanize" Clinton, with Penn arguing that the vast majority of voters cared more about substance than style. According to New York Times columnist Frank Rich, Penn and his wife, Nancy Jacobson, "helped brand the Hillary Clinton presidential campaign as a depository for special-interest contributions."{{Cite news |last=Rich |first=Frank |authorlink=Frank Rich |date=December 18, 2010 |title=Opinion {{!}} The Bipartisanship Racket |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/19/opinion/19rich.html |access-date=April 3, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210214012311/https://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/19/opinion/19rich.html?_r=1 |archive-date=February 14, 2021 |issn=0362-4331}} An NPR interview notes how much greater Mark Penn's business conflicts of interest were in comparison to other recent top campaign advisors like David Axelrod and Karl Rove.{{Cite news |date=April 7, 2008 |title=Clinton's Controversial Top Strategist Quits |work=All Things Considered |url=https://www.npr.org/2008/04/07/89441545/clintons-controversial-top-strategist-quits}}

Penn laid out his "strategy for winning" in a March 19, 2007, memo to the campaign. According to the memo, Penn believed Clinton's victory would be built upon a coalition of voters he called "Invisible Americans", a sort of reprise of Bill Clinton's "forgotten middle class", which would be composed of women and lower and middle class voters. Eventually it was this coalition that she ended up winning a year later.{{cite news |author=Green |first=Joshua |date=September 2008 |title=The Front-Runner's Fall |work=The Atlantic |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200809/hillary-clinton-campaign |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080817180236/http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200809/hillary-clinton-campaign |archive-date=August 17, 2008}} Penn wrote the "3 AM" advertisement that ran during the campaign, which was later named one of Time{{'}}s top 10 political ads of all time and was parodied on The Simpsons.

Penn advised Clinton not to apologize for voting for the Iraq War, insisting that "It's important for all Democrats to keep the word 'mistake' firmly on the Republicans."{{Cite web |last=Beinart |first=Peter |date=June 9, 2014 |title=What's Missing from Hillary's Iraq Apology |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2014/06/whats-missing-from-hillary-clintons-iraq-war-apology/372427/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221205194307/https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2014/06/whats-missing-from-hillary-clintons-iraq-war-apology/372427/ |archive-date=December 5, 2022 |website=The Atlantic}} Clinton followed this strategy. She would only apologize six years later in 2014.{{Cite web |last=Mogulescu |first=Miles |date=January 29, 2016 |title=Hillary's Pro-Iraq War Vote is Still a Really Big Deal |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/miles-mogulescu/hillarys-pro-iraq-war-vot_b_9112232.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220127162343/https://www.huffpost.com/entry/hillarys-pro-iraq-war-vot_b_9112232 |archive-date=January 27, 2022 |website=Huffington Post}}

Clinton was the front-runner in the early months of the Democratic primary, but in January 2008 she lost the Iowa caucus to then-Senator Barack Obama.{{cite web |last=Ambinder |first=Marc |date=March 5, 2008 |title=On That 3:00 A.M. Ad... |url=http://marcambinder.theatlantic.com/archives/2008/03/on_that_300_am_ad.php |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160413071921/http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2008/03/on-that-3-00-am-ad/52193/ |archive-date=April 13, 2016 |work=The Atlantic}}{{cite news |last=Cillizza |first=Chris |authorlink=Chris Cillizza |date=March 6, 2008 |title=Clinton's Blueprint for Victory |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=http://voices.washingtonpost.com/thefix/eye-on-2008/the-blueprint-hillary-rodham-c.html |access-date=May 12, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120916215120/http://voices.washingtonpost.com/thefix/eye-on-2008/the-blueprint-hillary-rodham-c.html |archive-date=September 16, 2012}} On April 6, 2008, Penn agreed to step down as chief strategist when it was disclosed that he met with representatives of Colombia's government in his role as the CEO of Burson Marsteller, a firm hired to lobby on Colombia's behalf, creating a scandal for Clinton's campaign.{{Cite news |last=Broder |first=John M. |date=April 6, 2008 |title=Chief Strategist of Clinton Campaign Steps Down |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/06/us/politics/06cnd-penn.html |access-date=May 22, 2023 |issn=0362-4331}}{{cite news |date=April 6, 2008 |title=Clinton Campaign Strategist Mark Penn Steps Down |website=National Public Radio |url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=89422142 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210825045940/https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=89422142 |archive-date=August 25, 2021}} It was suggested that he would remain in a similar though less formal role until the end of the campaign.{{cite news |last1=Defrank |first1=Thomas M. |last2=McAuliff |first2=Michael |date=April 8, 2008 |title=Mark Penn still in Clinton loop:source |work=New York Daily News |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/2008/04/08/2008-04-08_mark_penn_still_in_clinton_loop_source_.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080409015623/http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/2008/04/08/2008-04-08_mark_penn_still_in_clinton_loop_source_.html |archive-date=April 9, 2008}} As Secretary of State, Clinton ended up favoring the free-trade pact.{{cite news |last=Krause-Jackson |first=Flavia |date=January 28, 2011 |title=U.S. Committed to Free-Trade Accord With Colombia |work=Bloomberg Businessweek |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-01-28/u-s-committed-to-free-trade-accord-with-colombia-update1-.html |access-date=April 27, 2011}}{{cite news |date=January 21, 2009 |title=Hillary Clinton, Secretary of State, Gives Her Opinions About Colombia |work=Semana |url=http://www.semana.com/international/hillary-clinton-secretary-of-state-gives-her-opinions-about-colombia/119885-3.aspx |access-date=April 27, 2011}}

In May 2008, Time{{'}}s Karen Tumulty wrote that Penn thought the Democratic primaries were "winner-take-all", rather than allotted proportionally, citing anonymous sources who attended a Clinton strategy session with Penn in 2007. Senior Clinton staffer Harold Ickes is reported to have asked in frustration, "How can it possibly be that the much vaunted chief strategist doesn't understand proportional allocation?"{{cite magazine |last=Tumulty |first=Karen |url=http://www.time.com/time/politics/article/0,8599,1738331,00.html |title=Time: The Five Mistakes Clinton Made |magazine=Time |date=May 8, 2008 |access-date=December 26, 2008 |archive-date=July 26, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130726221440/http://www.time.com/time/politics/article/0,8599,1738331,00.html |url-status=dead }} Penn and Howard Wolfson, Clinton's communication director, both denied that the scene had taken place.{{cite web |last=Smith |first=Ben |date=May 8, 2008 |title=Penn denies Time report |url=http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0508/Penn_denies_Time_report.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180927230816/https://www.politico.com/blogs/ben-smith/2008/05/penn-denies-time-report-008554 |archive-date=September 27, 2018 |access-date=December 26, 2008 |website=Politico}}

Clinton's campaign was hobbled by infighting among the staff, including much hostility towards Penn,{{cite news |last1=Baker |first1=Peter |last2=Kornblut |first2=Anne E. |authorlink2=Anne Kornblut |date=March 6, 2008 |title=Even in Victory, Clinton Team Is Battling Itself |newspaper=Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/05/AR2008030503621.html |access-date=May 12, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080511210907/https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/05/AR2008030503621.html |archive-date=May 11, 2008}} and disagreement in strategy such as between Penn's strategy of going negative against Obama and other staff who wanted to maintain a positive campaign.

Penn advised British prime minister Tony Blair and conducted polling during his successful campaign for an unprecedented (for a Labour Party leader) third term in 2005. Bill Clinton had recommended Penn's services to Blair when they met at Ronald Reagan's funeral in 2004. Penn formulated the concept behind Blair's campaign slogan, "Forward Not Back", and refined it by conducting phone interviews with British swing voters through Penn, Schoen & Berland Associates. Blair's Labour Party bested Michael Howard's Conservative Party by 3% in the general parliamentary elections.

Penn's 2009 book, Microtrends, written with Kinney Zalesne and published by Hachette, argues that small groups of people can trigger big changes. Penn argues that a mere one percent of the American public (3 million people) can create a "microtrend" capable of launching a major business or even a new cultural movement, changing commercial, political and social landscapes.{{cite book|url=http://www.penguincatalogue.co.uk/lo/press/title.html?titleId=3877&catalogueId=214|title=Microtrends |publisher=Penguin Press|date=2009}} From December 2008 to December 2009, Penn and Zalesne authored a regular online column for the Wall Street Journal called "Microtrends".{{cite press release |date=December 11, 2008 |title=Mark Penn to Author "Microtrends" Column for wsj.com |url=http://www.wsjmediakit.com/pdf/digital/press.20081211a.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110718122106/https://www.wsjmediakit.com/pdf/digital/press.20081211a.pdf |archive-date=July 18, 2011 |publisher=The Wall Street Journal}}

The New York Times raised questions about conflicts of interest in Penn's Wall Street Journal column and the rest of his career.{{Cite news |last=Pérez-Peña |first=Richard |date=August 28, 2009 |title=Wall St. Journal Gives an Ethics Green Light to a P.R. Executive's Column |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/28/business/media/28penn.html |access-date=May 22, 2023 |issn=0362-4331}} New York Times reviewer Harry Hurt III described Microtrends as "a diligently researched tome chock-full of counterintuitive facts and findings" and "the perfect bible for a game of not-so-trivial pursuits concerning the hidden sociological truths of modern times...".{{cite news |last1=Hurt |first1=Harry III |date=September 16, 2007 |title=Why There's Strength in Small Numbers |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/16/business/16shelf.html?_r=0 |access-date=April 27, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230314213836/https://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/16/business/16shelf.html?_r=0 |archive-date=March 14, 2023}} On the other hand, Ezra Klein, writing for In These Times, described the book as "epically awful" and remarked that "If [Penn] is the pinnacle of his profession, then the profession uses numbers as a ruse – a superficial empiricism that obscures garden-variety hackery."{{Cite web |last=Klein |first=Ezra |authorlink=Ezra Klein |title=Trending Toward Inanity |url=https://inthesetimes.com/article/trending-towards-inanity |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220525014042/https://inthesetimes.com/article/trending-towards-inanity |archive-date=May 25, 2022 |access-date=April 26, 2022 |website=In These Times |date=September 14, 2007 |language=en}}

According to Politico, Penn has become disenchanted with the leftward shift in the Democratic Party. Philippe Reines suggested that Penn shouldered too much of the blame for Hillary Clinton's 2008 presidential defeat. Bill Clinton described Penn's recent 2018-19 commentary as "sour grapes", suggesting "[Penn] wasn’t invited back into the [2016] campaign."{{cite news |last1=Karni |first1=Annie |date=August 31, 2018 |title=Why Mark Penn Is Sounding Trumpy |work=Politico |url=https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2018/08/31/mark-penn-clinton-strategist-mueller-investigation-donald-trump-219622 |access-date=January 11, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230115005932/https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2018/08/31/mark-penn-clinton-strategist-mueller-investigation-donald-trump-219622/ |archive-date=January 15, 2023}}

Throughout 2018 and 2019, Penn was vocal with his criticisms of Special Counsel Robert Mueller's probe into Russian interference in the 2016 election, regularly appearing on Fox News and contributing columns to The Hill in which he, in the words of Politico, "bashed" the probe and ensuing attempt to impeach then-President Donald Trump. During this period, CNN and MSNBC declined to book Penn and his frequent appearances on Fox were criticized by some interviewed by Politico who said he was seeking revenge against Democrats for saddling him with Hillary Clinton's defeat in the 2008 U.S. presidential election.

In an August 4, 2018, appearance on Fox News, Penn called Mueller's investigation into Russian collusion “a national waste of time".{{Cite web |date=August 4, 2018 |title=Mark Penn: Mueller probe is 'national waste of time' |url=http://video.foxnews.com/v/5818039136001/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220929021820/https://www.foxnews.com/video/5818039136001 |archive-date=September 29, 2022 |access-date=October 30, 2019 |website=Fox News |language=en}} Penn published several columns which criticized Mueller and political and legal adversaries of Trump.{{Cite news |last1=Markay |first1=Lachlan |last2=Stein |first2=Sam |date=December 17, 2018 |title=Trump Previously Lined the Pockets of His Democrat Defender Mark Penn |url=https://www.thedailybeast.com/mark-penn-trumps-democratic-defender-previously-worked-for-trump |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221128053310/https://www.thedailybeast.com/mark-penn-trumps-democratic-defender-previously-worked-for-trump |archive-date=November 28, 2022 |access-date=December 22, 2018 |work=The Daily Beast |language=en}}{{Cite news |last=Karni |first=Annie |date=March 1, 2019 |title=Mark Penn, Ex-Clinton Loyalist, Visits Trump, and Democrats Are Not Pleased |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/01/us/politics/mark-penn-trump-clinton.html |access-date=March 1, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221130061519/https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/01/us/politics/mark-penn-trump-clinton.html |archive-date=November 30, 2022 |issn=0362-4331}} In online opinion columns, he alleged that Mueller and "Democratic-leaning lawyers" were acting improperly in trying to prepare a charge of obstruction of justice against Trump.{{cite web |last=Penn |first=Mark |date=November 30, 2018 |title=Mark Penn: The Mueller investigation has come up empty on Russia -- You won't believe what's coming next |url=https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/mark-penn-the-mueller-investigation-has-come-up-empty-on-russia-you-wont-believe-whats-coming-next |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221205134912/https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/mark-penn-the-mueller-investigation-has-come-up-empty-on-russia-you-wont-believe-whats-coming-next |archive-date=December 5, 2022 |access-date=December 3, 2018 |website=www.foxnews.com |publisher=Fox News Channel}} The Daily Beast wrote that Penn had become one of Trump's biggest defenders in 2018.

Penn has used the term "deep state" to refer to what he characterizes as Democratic operatives within the government who seek to undermine and sabotage Trump's first presidency. He has alleged that Rod Rosenstein, who served as deputy attorney general in the Trump administration from 2017 to 2019, had conflicts of interest that should have precluded his involvement in investigations into Trump.{{cite news |last1=Wilkie |first1=Christina |date=June 4, 2018 |title=Trump lays out two rationales for pardoning himself in the Mueller probe |work=CNBC |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2018/06/04/trump-lays-out-two-rationales-for-pardoning-himself-in-mueller-probe.html |access-date=January 11, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221206074121/https://www.cnbc.com/2018/06/04/trump-lays-out-two-rationales-for-pardoning-himself-in-mueller-probe.html |archive-date=December 6, 2022}}

Penn met with Trump in February and November 2019 to discuss Trump's re-election campaign. After the latter meeting, Penn told The Washington Post, "It's the second time I have ever met with the President. I'm not counseling him. I'm not advising him." Penn also told the Post that his discussions with Trump concerned only data that was already publicly available.{{Cite news |last1=Alemany |first1=Jacqueline |last2=Dawsey |first2=Josh |date=November 26, 2019 |title=Former Clinton strategist Mark Penn counsels President Trump on impeachment |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/clinton-strategist-mark-penn-counsels-president-trump-on-impeachment/2019/11/26/e7b29cd4-1075-11ea-a533-90a7becf7713_story.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221216033635/https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/clinton-strategist-mark-penn-counsels-president-trump-on-impeachment/2019/11/26/e7b29cd4-1075-11ea-a533-90a7becf7713_story.html |archive-date=December 16, 2022}}

In an April 2023 op-ed, Penn outlined a path to victory for a presidential candidate to win through appeals to an educated, suburban base{{Cite news |last=Gaudiano |first=Nicole |date=May 1, 2023 |title=Ex-Clinton pollster promoting DeSantis as a way to defeat Trump is 'dangerous,' Democratic group warns |work=Business Insider |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/ron-desantis-donald-trump-biden-ex-clinton-pollster-mark-penn-2023-5?op=1}} and expressed hope for Governor of Florida Ron DeSantis, citing, among other things, a motivation to prevent Trump from becoming president again.{{Cite news |last=Penn |first=Mark |title=Opinion {{!}} Don't Count Ron DeSantis Out |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/dont-count-ron-desantis-out-trump-2024-gop-primary-moderates-culture-war-34be9a75 |access-date=May 6, 2023 |newspaper=The Wall Street Journal |date=April 30, 2023 |language=en-US}}

In 2025, Penn praised Twitter (officially known as X) as a "a revived and increasingly vibrant platform".{{Cite news |last=Murphy |first=Hannah |last2=Thomas |first2=Daniel |date=2025-03-30 |title=Brands spend nominal sums on X ads to keep Elon Musk happy |url=https://www.ft.com/content/8d3e4dba-1246-482d-9aaa-d970d2cb0a94 |work=Financial Times}}

Penn is married to Nancy Jacobson, the co-founder, board president and CEO of No Labels, a 501(c)4 political organization that advocates for centrism and bipartisanship.{{Cite web |last=Lippman |first=Daniel |date=December 8, 2022 |orig-date= |title=Inside the turmoil roiling No Labels' unity ticket presidential campaign |url=https://www.politico.com/news/2022/12/07/no-labels-unity-presidential-ticket-centrist-group-2024-00072712 |access-date=May 6, 2023 |website=Politico |language=en}}

• Political consulting
• Triangulation (politics)

{{reflist}}

{{wikiquote}}

• [http://www.markpenn.com/ Official website]
• [https://searcharchives.library.gwu.edu/repositories/2/resources/495 Mark Penn digital polling data collection and oral history] Special Collections Research Center, George Washington University
• {{C-SPAN|651}}

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Penn, Mark}}

Category:1954 births

Category:American male non-fiction writers

Category:American people of Lithuanian-Jewish descent

Category:American political consultants

Category:Jewish American non-fiction writers

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Category:Hillary Clinton 2008 presidential campaign