ABOUT
Why Enter the 2025 Pollies
Hosted by the only bipartisan, nonprofit organization for political professionals, the Pollie Awards set the standard for excellence in the political communications and public affairs industries. Over 250 judges—all fellow campaign pros—evaluate entries based on creativity, production value and most importantly, political effectiveness. And only the Pollie Awards hold entries to the highest ethical standards. If you want to stand out from the crowd, enter the Pollie Awards today!
AAPC membership is not required to submit an entry; however, AAPC members receive HIGHLY discounted entry fees. Not a member? Click here to join! or contact us at contest@theaapc.org or (703) 245-8020.
WHAT WINNERS HAVE SAID
ABOUT THE POLLIE AWARDS
Film has the Oscars. Music has the Grammys. In politics, our biggest night is the Pollies, and [it] is our highest honor.
2015 Pollie WinnerDean Nielsen, Cerillion N4 Partners
With so many political campaigns and organizations each year, it can often be hard to cut through the clutter and be recognized, especially if you don’t have existing connections. The Pollie Awards allow your work to succeed on its own merits and, should it be deemed worthy, recognized regardless of contacts, name recognition, or media attention.
2020 Pollie WinnerLoren Merchan, Authentic Campaigns
The Pollie Contest is where the rubber meets the road. There is a lot of great talent out there. The Pollie contest is the great equalizer and a fantastic networking opportunity.
2019 Pollie EntrantDalton Temple, Hill City Strategies
The Pollie Awards give an opportunity for prospective clients to know that our work is respected on a national level.
2016 Pollie WinnerAmile Wilson, Hapax Creative Strategies
The Pollie Awards is the only political ad competition our firm will enter. For decades now, it's set the standard for excellence.
2019 Pollie WinnerMark Putnam, Putnam Partners
JUDGING
We Are The Fairest of Them All
AAPC takes significant steps to ensure fairness in the judging process, including blind judging (firm names cannot be visible) and random assignment of judges (no gaming the pool). We have also increased required judge qualifications. Pulling from a judge pool of more than 250 also minimizes the insider bias that is present in some awards programs.
Each entry is scored against its own campaign’s goals and budget — how effectively (and measurably) did a piece meet its objective? Creativity and production value are taken into proper account, but political effectiveness is primary (worth 50% of the score).
In short, the Pollies are not a “popularity contest,” but a reflection of the most politically effective, persuasive and creative work of the cycle.
The judging period will take place from Wednesday, February 12, 2025 through Wednesday, February 24, 2025.
TIMELINE
Annual Pollie Awards
The 2025 Pollie Awards Contest opens November 7, 2024 and closes February 3, 2025.
Dec 13
Early Bird Deadline
Jan 29
Regular Entry Deadline
Feb 3
Contest Closes
Feb 12
Judging Begins
Feb 24
Judging Ends
SPECIAL AWARDS
Recognizing the best and brightest young political consulting/public affairs professionals in the U.S.
AAPC's 40 under 40 Awards program recognizes individuals under the age of 40 who are in the political consulting/public affairs profession and contribute to the advancement of the industry. The AAPC is looking for the top 40 professionals whose achievements in political consulting/public affairs deserve to be singled out for excellence early on in their careers and whose conduct is consistent with AAPC's professional code of ethics.
Honoring excellence in campaign strategy and management
The Campaign Excellence Awards are a longstanding tradition of the AAPC and recognize those individuals who have significantly contributed to the success of a candidate or public affairs campaign and whose conduct has been consistent with the Professional Code of Ethics of the AAPC.