The Focus Group Podcast

The Focus Group Podcast

Unfiltered, uncompromising, unexpected—The Focus Group is a look into what the average voter thinks about politics, policy, and current events. Sarah Longwell, publisher of The Bulwark, has conducted hundreds of hours of focus groups all across the country. She and a series of special guests will take you behind the glass to hear what real focus group participants have to say. https://www.thebulwark.com/podcast/focus-group/

Episodes

S6 Ep19: What a Difference a Year Makes (with Jonathan Chait)

January 10, 2026 • 54 mins

The United States just captured Venezuela's dictator, and we needed to get some quick voter reactions. Is this REALLY what the newest members of Trump's coalition voted for? We're also sensing growing discontent from them with the state of the country, and with the Trump administration governing more for its friends than for them. Atlantic staff writer Jonathan Chait joins the show to break down voter sentiment nearly a year ...

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S6 Ep18: Sarah’s First Focus Groups

January 3, 2026 • 46 mins
Sarah started doing focus groups in 2018 and 2019 hoping to save the Republican Party from Trump—by finding a primary challenger who wouldn’t embarrass themselves. Instead, she discovered voters who were fine with Trump, and she picked up a years-long addiction that turned into this show. We listen to audio from Sarah’s earliest focus groups with reluctant Ohio Trump voters, and not-so-reluctant New Hampshire Trump voters. The...
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S6 Ep17: America on Tape: A Brutal (and Hopeful) Year

December 27, 2025 • 183 mins
A year in review from The Focus Group Podcast: the revealing moments, toughest conversations, and warnings that hit a little harder with hindsight—from swing voters to Democrats to cracks inside MAGA.

Get 15% off OneSkin with the code THEFOCUSGROUP at https://www.oneskin.co/THEFOCUSGROUP #oneskinpod

Original episodes:

Nothing is True, Everything is Possible (with Anne Applebaum): 
https://audiob...
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S6 Ep16: MAGA's 'Crunchy' Surprise (with Jonathan Cohn)

December 20, 2025 • 49 mins
Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.'s 'Make America Healthy Again' movement and its adherents have done some of the most harm of anyone in Donald Trump's second term. The voters who are motivated by 'MAHA' are also some of the most interesting. The Bulwark's resident healthcare expert, Jonathan Cohn joins the show to break down the policy consequences of RFK's healthcare regime, and what motivates the everyday 'MAHA' voter.

By Jon...
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S6 Ep15: The Civilian-Military Relationship (with Mark Hertling)

December 13, 2025 • 58 mins
The American military used to be one of the more trusted institutions in America. In 2025, it's a major political football. But how much do voters know about the military and its proper use? Bulwark military expert, Lt. Gen. Mark Hertling (Ret.) joins the show.

This holiday, give your loved ones the only gift that keeps on giving — health. Go to Superpower.com/gift to get a free $49 gift box with your gifted membershi...
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S6 Ep14: (Focus) Group Therapy (with Astead Herndon)

December 6, 2025 • 58 mins
Swing voters are pretty fed up with politics in general. They’re often “swingy” because they can’t really stand either party. And in our most recent focus group, they all let political leaders HAVE IT. We also check in with Maine Democratic primary voters on their U.S. Senate race, which is shaping up to be one of the biggest proxy wars in the Democratic Party in 2026 and is telling us a lot about what Democrats are more willi...
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S6 Ep13: Just Press The Deflation Button! (with Catherine Rampell)

November 29, 2025 • 52 mins
Donald Trump got elected in 2024 because voters felt prices were too high. But, as our guest says, that's not really a great thing for a politician to promise. So, as we head into the holiday season of Trump's first year back in office, how are his voters feeling about the state of the economy? New Bulwark economics editor Catherine Rampell joins the show to discuss the state of the economy and what politicians can and cannot ...
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S6 Ep12: Epstein Files & Illegal Orders (w/ Will Sommer and Sen. Elissa Slotkin)

November 22, 2025 • 47 mins
Donald Trump had to make an about-face on the Epstein Files because some Trump voters were getting…mildly annoyed. Will Sommer joins Sarah to hear them out. Then, Sen. Elissa Slotkin joins the show to discuss her PSA with her colleagues to the military and intelligence community, reminding them they can refuse illegal orders. They also discuss the recent government shutdown fight, and what Sen. Slotkin learned from winning sev...
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S6 Ep11: The GOP's Life After Trump (with Robert Draper)

November 15, 2025 • 53 mins
There's always a possibility that Donald Trump will try to run for a third term. But plenty of Republicans don't even want that...for now. We asked some of Trump's base how they're feeling about a third term for him (their answers may surprise you!) and talk about Marjorie Taylor Greene's about-face, and the rise of antisemitism on the right. Robert Draper of The New York Times Magazine joins Sarah to walk through some of the ...
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S6 Ep10: Gen Z: They're Zooming Apart (with Rachel Janfaza)

November 8, 2025 • 61 mins
We've heard a lot about how young men have shifted to the right...but this week's election showed young women moving to the left as well. Gen Z expert Rachel Janfaza, founder of The Up and Up, joins Sarah to discuss why young women have shifted to the left, why their male peers have shifted to the right, and why their life priorities are so different. They also discuss Gen Z's relationship with technology like AI, why Gen Z is...
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S6 Ep9: Virginia: National Politics is Local (with Jeff Schapiro)

November 1, 2025 • 59 mins
No election in 2025 has been more impacted by the Trump presidency than the elections in Virginia. This state doesn't vote for MAGA candidates anymore, but their nominee for governor, Winsome Earle-Sears, isn't really campaigning like that. So one of Sarah's favorite Democrats, Abigail Spanberger, looks poised for a solid win on Election Day. Meanwhile in the Attorney General race, the Republican incumbent, Jason Miyares could...
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S6 Ep8: New Jersey: The 'No Narc' State (with Jonathan V. Last)

October 25, 2025 • 62 mins
The New Jersey governor's race is a little too close for comfort, after New Jersey had one of the largest swings toward Donald Trump of any state in the country, and the Democratic candidate, Mikie Sherrill is on track for a sub-optimal performance on Election Day against a sometimes-MAGA Republican, Jack Ciattarelli. Sarah doesn't let JVL on The Focus Group very often, but made an exception because he's one of The Bulwark's r...
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S6 Ep7: New Yorkers Brace for Mamdani (with Harry Siegel)

October 18, 2025 • 55 mins
Zohran Mamdani, the young, telegenic, democratic socialist state assemblyman, looks set to be New York City's next mayor. So how are New Yorkers feeling about turning the keys over to him? We asked some of his supporters and detractors. Harry Siegel, senior editor at The City, returns to the show to give his two cents on one of the wilder New York City races in recent memory.

show notes:

Get free shipping an...
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S6 Ep6: They're 'Opening the Door' (with Andrew Egger)

October 11, 2025 • 48 mins
For the last few weeks, the Trump administration has escalated its authoritarian impulses, from pressuring ABC to cancel a late night host, to deploying the Texas National Guard to Chicago. You might call it "authoritarian," but the voters are just getting mildly queasy. The Bulwark's Andrew Egger joins the show to talk about the news, the voters, and how we're even supposed to cover it these days.

By Andrew Egger:
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S6 Ep5: I'd Do Anything To Win (But I Won't Do That) (with Dan Pfeiffer)

October 4, 2025 • 58 mins
We haven't caught up with Democratic voters since the summer. So, who do they see in the Democratic Party who is distinguishing themselves? And, do Democratic voters really want to shut down the government? It turns out some of them are really wrestling with how to wield power. Dan Pfeiffer, co-host of Pod Save America and author of the Substack newsletter The Message Box joins Sarah to download on how the base of the party is...
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S6 Ep4: The Right's 'Turning Point'? (with Will Sommer)

September 27, 2025 • 46 mins
Charlie Kirk was one of the most important figures in conservative media for over a decade, especially for Gen Z. We asked a couple of focus groups of young conservatives what Kirk meant to them, how they're grappling with his passing, and who else they think will take up his mantle on the right. Will Sommer, author of The Bulwark's False Flag newsletter, joins Sarah to discuss the state of young conservatives and his reportin...
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S6 Ep3: 'Secure Borders...At What Cost?' (with Adrian Carrasquillo)

September 20, 2025 • 53 mins
Donald Trump is bleeding support from Hispanic voters, including from some who voted for him. So, we found some former Trump voters who are souring on him, and asked them why. Adrian Carrasquillo, author of The Bulwark's Huddled Masses newsletter, joins the show to discuss voter sentiments on immigration, the future of the immigration debate (especially among Democrats), and his on-the-ground reporting in cities around the cou...
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S6 Ep2: You Can Ramp It Up or Ramp It Down (with Rachel Kleinfeld)

September 13, 2025 • 42 mins
The murder of Charlie Kirk was the culmination of Americans' long-brewing fear of political violence. First, political violence expert Rachel Kleinfeld joins Sarah to discuss the ramifications of Kirk's death on the American body politic, and then Sarah discusses voters' fears of political violence that we've heard through the years.
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S6 Ep1: Swing Voters Say Trump is "Meh" (with Ashley Parker)

September 6, 2025 • 56 mins
Donald Trump has run into some summer doldrums...from the uncertainty in the economy, to his Big Beautiful Bill, to his refusal to come clean about Jeffrey Epstein. We're wondering how voters are processing the last couple of months. Atlantic staff writer Ashley Parker, who's covered Trump for over a decade, joins Sarah for our season premiere.

By Ashley Parker:

'I Run the Country and the World'
Flattery,...
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S5 Ep26: What Are Focus Groups For Anyway?

August 16, 2025 • 34 mins
The Focus Group Podcast will be back for real in a couple of weeks, but by popular demand, Sarah and her producer, Conor Kilgore, take on some of our listeners' frequently asked questions about how and why they do all these focus groups.
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