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Steve Kornacki Is Back for Another Election, Armed with His Khakis and Big Board
NBC and MSNBC's national political correspondent is back at his "Big Board" for the presidential election.
After months of rallies, caucuses, debates, and peculiar moments on the campaign trail, America’s favorite political data expert is back for the 2024 presidential election. Steve Kornacki is returning to his “Big Board” and interactive maps to explain polling numbers as they come in during the election between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump.
Millions of Americans have turned to, and perhaps crushed on, the accomplished political journalist for constantly keeping voters updated on quickly evolving electoral data, especially during the last presidential election. Former SNL cast member Leslie Jones called Kornacki’s 2020 election coverage “next level” when he pulled out a calculator to do some quick math as new numbers were reported.
“It’s a lot of spreadsheets, a lot of numbers, a lot of trying to memorize things,” Kornacki told TODAY about prepping for the big night. “I say 99% of what I prepare for I will never put on the air, but you don’t know what that 1% is.”
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Kornacki is a trusted political analyst, but what else do you need to know about him? Read on to revisit how he had America smitten during NBC's last presidential election coverage and how you can watch him again in 2024.
Who is Steve Kornacki?
Born in 1979 in Groton, Massachusetts, Kornacki is a national political correspondent for NBC News and MSNBC. He also hosted The Revolution with Steve Kornacki podcast and wrote the book The Red and the Blue: The 1990s and the Birth of Political Tribalism.
While Kornacki has been a political journalist and commentator since the early 2000s, after graduating from Boston University, his expertise in crunching poll numbers and, of course, his signature Gap khakis earned him viral celebrity-like status during the 2020 presidential election.
It appeared that Kornacki never took a break from delivering election coverage, constantly and tirelessly breaking down the polling numbers for viewers, which made folks wonder if he ever slept. The hashtag #TrackingKornacki took on a life of its own and MSNBC even had a “Kornacki Cam” on him at all times, even when he wasn’t giving a formal update on the latest data with his maps and touchscreens.
On November 9, 2020, Jimmy Fallon paid a surprise visit to Kornacki’s office to see how he was doing after an insanely hectic night of election coverage. Busy at work behind his computer and desk covered in papers, Kornacki confirmed that he was “recharged.”
“What happens now to you?” Fallon asked.
“They put me back into the perseveration for about three and half years,” Kornacki jokingly replied.
Kornacki has also provided his analytical style of commentary for the Olympics, the Kentucky Derby, and NBC Sports’ Football Night in America.
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How can you watch Steve Kornacki’s polls coverage on election night?
The “Kornacki Cam” is back, folks. Kornacki will be providing his signature, in-depth analysis of the 2024 presidential election numbers and you can watch it all on Peacock.
On November 5, NBC’s election coverage will be available to stream on Peacock’s “Multiview” feature, allowing users to simultaneously navigate through live streams of breaking news, data analysis, and polling results.
In addition to breaking news and real-time election coverage from NBC News Now, Kornacki will deliver his analysis of polling numbers as they come in through the night via the “Kornacki Cam” live stream. Viewers will also be able to stream live broadcasts on the Electoral College results directly from the NBC News Decision Desk. You’ll be able to find all of this content on Peacock’s special “Election Hub.”
Peacock’s Multiview experience will begin streaming at 6 p.m. ET on Tuesday, November 5 and will run until approximately 2 a.m. ET on Wednesday, November 6.
Steve Kornacki didn’t expect his election coverage to go viral
During an appearance on The Kelly Clarkson Show after the 2020 presidential election, Kornacki said it took him a “few days” to even realize he’d been declared a “chart-throb” or “map daddy.”
“My friends and family started sending me these texts, and they had to translate some of [the memes] for me,” he said. “I didn’t quite understand what was happening, but it was quite an experience. I’ll put it that way.”
People named Kornacki one of the magazine’s Sexiest Men of 2020 and his viral fame also led to a line of merchandise including mugs, shirts, and pillows. Gap even saw a “90% increase in khaki sales” following Kornacki’s election coverage, TODAY reported.
Steve Kornacki has been analyzing politics since he was in high school
Kornacki has been breaking down the polling results since he was just a teen in braces. During an appearance on Late Night with Seth Meyers, Kornacki shared an old video of him from 1994 giving a news report for a program called Political Corner with Steve Kornacki.
“It is highly plausible the Republicans could take over the Senate from the Democrats for the first time since 1986. That’s all for now, there’s other races. Perhaps, another time, I’ll talk about more,” a young Kornacki says in the video.
Meyers then joked he wished the video ended with Kornacki saying, ‘‘And one day, I’m going to have a giant map and I’m going to be able to zoom in on that map.’'
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How to watch election night coverage on NBC
You can find NBC’s live coverage of the 2024 presidential election on November 5 on local affiliate channel. You can also stream NBC’s coverage online via DirecTV Stream, fuboTV, or Hulu + Live TV, as long as you have a cable provider login.
Live news coverage will also be available on NBC's 24/7 YouTube stream.
