Marian Miner Cook
Athenaeum

A distinctive
feature of social and
cultural life at CMC

 

Kings, Queens, and Jokers: American Political Trends for 2026 and Beyond

Fri, November 14, 2025
Lunch Program
Henry Olsen '83

A senior fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center, Henry Olsen '83 is a scholar of American politics. Focusing on how America’s political order is being upended by populist challenges from the left and the right, he will provide commentary on American political trends in 2026 and beyond.  

Henry Olsen '83 was previously an editor at UnHerd.com and a regular contributor to American GreatnessCity Journal, and World Magazine. His work has been featured in many prominent publications, including The New York TimesThe Wall Street JournalNational ReviewThe Guardian, and The Weekly Standard.

His predictions of the 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016, and 2018 elections were particularly praised for their remarkable accuracy. In the 2016 campaign, he accurately identified the factors fueling the rise of Donald Trump early in the race, and his election-eve predictions were among the most accurate of any major analyst or commentator. Olsen regularly speaks about American political trends and global populism in the United State, Europe, and Australia.

Olsen has worked in senior executive positions at many center-right think tanks. He most recently served from 2006 to 2013 as Vice President and Director, National Research Initiative, at the American Enterprise Institute. He previously worked as Vice President of Programs at the Manhattan Institute and President of the Commonwealth Foundation.

Olsen has a B.A. in government from Claremont McKenna College and a J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School. He is a member of the Board of Governors of the Rose Institute of State and Local Government. 

Mr. Olsen's Athenaeum presentation is sponsored by Rose Institute of State and Local Government at CMC.

Registration

Meal reservations now open to everyone in the Claremont Colleges.

Marian Miner Cook Athenaeum

Claremont McKenna College
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Claremont, CA 91711

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