James A. Barnes is a senior writer for Ballotpedia and consultant to CNN, projecting the outcomes of presidential, congressional and gubernatorial races for its election night and primary night coverage. He was formerly the chief political correspondent for "National Journal" magazine and founder of the National Journal Insiders Poll. He is co-author of "Public Opinion among Political Elites: The Insiders Poll as a Research Toll" in "The Forum: A Journal of Applied Research in Contemporary Politics" (2013), and a contributor to "The State of American Politics" (Rowman & Littlefield, 2001).