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Jack McPherrin

Research Editor, Research Fellow

Jack McPherrin is The Heartland Institute’s research editor, as well as a research fellow within Heartland’s Glenn C. Haskins Emerging Issues Center. As research editor, Jack sources, edits, and manages the publication process for all Heartland research publications, and regularly writes op-eds for various media outlets. His articles have been published on FoxNews.com and TheBlaze.com, and in The Epoch Times, Human Events, The Washington Times, The Western Journal, The Center Square, American Greatness, Townhall, American Thinker, and RedState, among others.

As a research fellow, Jack authors his own research papers, policy studies, legislative tip sheets, and other policy-focused publications; he focuses most heavily upon authoritarian tactics, collectivist ideology, technocracy, environmental, social, and governance (ESG) systems, and international affairs relevant to American society. Some of his longer-form publications include: “Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Scores: A Threat to Individual Liberty, Free Markets, and the U.S. Economy” (2023), “The Road to Totalitarianism: Lessons from Russia” (2023), Socialism at a Glance (2024), and “Who Really Won the 2020 Election? Measuring the Effect of Mail-in Ballot Fraud in the Trump-Biden Race for the White House” (2024). Jack’s work has been featured, discussed, and/or cited by many influential media figures and conservative voices, including Glenn Beck, Mark Levin, Tucker Carlson, and Sean Hannity, among many others.

Jack’s work on ESG in particular has directly impacted legislation in a multitude of states, which have enacted policies mirroring Jack’s products and recommendations. The aforementioned policy paper, “Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Scores: A Threat to Individual Liberty, Free Markets, and the U.S. Economy,” suggested policy changes that Florida enacted shortly thereafter, with Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) signing them into law in May 2023. Florida’s bill represented the most comprehensive anti-ESG legislation enacted in any state in the country at the time of DeSantis’ signing, and remains the strongest as of 2025.

Jack has also co-authored numerous national surveys conducted by Rasmussen Reports, one of America’s leading pollsters. The latest of these surveys, “Heartland/Rasmussen Poll: One-in-Five Mail-In Voters Admit to Committing at Least One kind of Voter Fraud During 2020 Election” (2023-2024), received substantial attention from the general public, media figures, and political leaders, including former President Donald Trump, who called it “the most important poll released in the last 20 years.”

Jack holds a Master of Arts in International Affairs from Loyola University-Chicago, and a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and History from Boston College. Prior to his tenure at Heartland and the completion of his graduate degree, Jack worked in the private sector in Chicago, where he still resides.