Every American political campaigner working today is operating inside a structure Lee Atwater built. The architect of the modern campaign manager role — first entry on The Campaigner Index 2026.
The role used to belong to politics. It belongs to every boardroom now. The senior operator who runs coordinated PR, GEO, paid, regulatory, and reputation campaigns — the seat the modern CEO needs.
The campaigner is the senior operator who runs coordinated political, corporate, and category influence campaigns — across PR, GEO, paid, regulatory, and reputation. The role used to belong to politics. It belongs to every boardroom now.