John Zogby, founder of the polling firm Zogby International, author and columnist at Forbes, and senior adviser with JZ Analytics, will deliver a lecture titled “The 2012 U.S. Elections: Political Landscape and Potential Impact in the Middle East,” on Wednesday, May 9 from 1:00 to 2:30 pm in Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Alsaud Hall, room P071, AUC New Cairo.

“The U.S. presidential elections are always so highly visible, and they have an impact on the rest of the world,” Zogby said. “During the lecture, I will take a snapshot of the 2012 U.S. presidential elections and report what I am finding in the polls and what the impact can be.”

In 1984, Zogby founded the polling firm Zogby International, and since then he has conducted polls and focus groups around the world. He attracted much attention during the 1992 U.S. presidential elections when he released a survey showing that the New York state governor would lose in his home state to incumbent President George W. Bush. Zogby also correctly polled the result of the 2000 presidential elections, which was won narrowly by Bush.

“Candidates run in elections, but ultimately it is the people who vote,” explained Zogby. “The direction of policies can and often do change dramatically after elections. I want to clarify a number of misunderstandings by sharing what Americans and Arabs really think about each other as they go to the polls this year.”

Zogby previously hosted a weekly show called Zogby's Real America. He also serves as senior adviser at the John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, and as the first senior fellow at the Life Cycle Institute, The Catholic University of America. In addition, he is a member of the board of directors of the Advertising Research Foundation.