Franklin Pierce to Host First-in-the-Nation Primary Forum

FranklinPierce University will host the Fitzwater Presidential Forum to discuss recent Boston Herald/FranklinPierce University poll results in the aftermath of the GOP debates as well as preview Saturday’s Democratic Debate in Manchester and talk all things presidential politics.

The forum is one of several that the University has hosted leading up to New Hampshire’s First-in-the-Nation primary, according to a press statement.

The event will feature Andrew H. Card, Franklin Pierce University President and former White House Chief of Staff to President George W. Bush as well as Kelly Myers, a fellow at the University’s Marlin Fitzwater Center for Communications, and president of RKM Research.

Chris Kelly of the Boston Herald will serve as a moderator for the forum.

In addition to serving as George W. Bush’s Chief of Staff, Card also served under George H.W. Bush as Assistant to the President and Deputy Chief of Staff and later as U.S. Secretary of Transportation. Card first served inthe White House under President Reagan as Special Assistant to the President for Intergovernmental Affairs and as Deputy Assistant to the President, and Director of Intergovernmental Affairs. Card served inthe Massachusetts House of Representatives from 1975–1983 and also made a bid for the Republican nomination for governor in 1982. Card brings a very rare perspective to presidential politics having served three U.S. presidents. He was also the New Hampshire campaign chairman for George H.W. Bush in his first bid for the White House.

Myers is considered one of the region’s most respected pollsters, having conducted accurate presidential polls since 1992. In 2008 when many national polling organizations missed on Hillary Clinton’s New Hampshire primary victory, Myers and Franklin Pierce University got it right.

Following Card and Myers, the forum will also feature faculty experts: Dr. Frank Cohen, political science; Dr. Douglas Ley, American History and NH State Representative; Dr. Jennie Brown, Psychology, Terrorism Studies; and Dr. Allan Rachlin, sociology. Alexander Powell a Political Science major at Franklin Pierce University will join thefaculty experts as well.

WHERE: Franklin Pierce University, Manchester Campus 670 North Commercial St. Center Tower, Third floor Manchester.

WHEN: Friday, Dec. 18, 2015, at 10 a.m.

WHY: Franklin Pierce University has been active in political polling for many years, with civic engagement, media coverage, and public policy being a focus at the Fitzwater Center for Communication. The Fitzwater Presidential Forums are a series of events designed to engage thoughtful discourse and dialogue surrounding the 2016 Presidentialelection as a way to engage both the student body and the general public in the political process.