WORK WITH ME
Electoral Intelligence | Strategic Consulting | Research Collaboration
I DON'T DO RALLIES. I DO RESULTS.
In February 2018, a political party approached me with a familiar request: 'We need you to organize a massive rally. 10,000 people. We have the budget.' I declined. They were confused. 'Every other consultant we've talked to is excited about this. Why aren't you?'
Here's why: I've spent two decades in Indian electoral politics, and I've learned one crucial lesson—rallies make great photos, but they rarely win elections. What wins elections? Systematic booth-level intelligence. Precise voter targeting. Organizational strength assessment. Ground truth validation. The unglamorous, methodical work that most political consultants avoid because it's harder than renting a sound system and booking a stadium.
I told them: 'Instead of one 10,000-person rally, let me build you a booth-level intelligence system across 180 polling stations. I'll map demographics, assess organizational capacity, track sentiment, and build predictive models. It won't look impressive in photos. But it'll tell you exactly where to deploy resources to maximize vote swing.' They agreed. We built the system. They won by 8,427 votes in a constituency exit polls said they'd lose.
That's what I do. Not spectacle. Not promises. Results grounded in systematic intelligence and rigorous methodology.
I'm Anupam Datta. For the past 20 years, I've worked at the intersection of electoral politics, strategic intelligence, and democratic governance across India—primarily in Tripura, Assam, West Bengal and Jharkhand. I'm not a typical political consultant. I don't do flashy TV campaigns or celebrity endorsements. I build information systems that predict electoral outcomes with 89-96% accuracy. I design ground operations that translate voter preferences into turnout. I analyze social structures to identify coalition possibilities others miss.
My background is unusual for this field. I studied engineering but dropped out to work on the Dishari project (2009-2012)—a welfare delivery initiative in tribal Tripura that taught me more about politics than any textbook could. Since then, I've advised 47 constituency-level campaigns, built booth-level intelligence systems for 1,247 polling stations, and developed methodologies that outperform traditional polling by 4-5X.
I'm currently pursuing graduate studies in political science because I believe practitioners should engage seriously with theory, and theorists should engage honestly with practice. That combination—field experience plus academic rigor—is what I bring to collaborations.
**1. Electoral Intelligence Systems**
I build booth-level intelligence architecture for campaigns: demographic mapping, organizational assessment, sentiment tracking, and predictive modeling. This isn't polling. This is systematic field verification producing forecasts with 85-95% accuracy.
What this looks like:
· 6-8 weeks of intensive field mapping across target constituencies
· Booth captain recruitment and training (quality-controlled)
· Daily/weekly intelligence reports feeding strategic decision-making
· Resource allocation optimization based on where marginal gains are highest
· Post-election validation and learning systems
**2. Campaign Strategy & Design**
I design campaign architectures—not just messaging, but the entire strategic framework: resource allocation, targeting decisions, organizational structures, and feedback mechanisms. This is strategic planning grounded in booth-level intelligence, not consultant theories disconnected from ground reality.
What this looks like:
· Strategic situation assessment (what's actually happening on the ground)
· Coalition possibility analysis (caste-class arithmetic, identity politics)
· Precision targeting frameworks (who to reach, how, through which channels)
· Ground game vs. air war optimization (where to invest limited resources)
· Governance delivery documentation (activating voter memory)
**3. Opposition Research (Ethical)**
I conduct systematic opposition research with clear ethical boundaries. I investigate voting records, governance failures, conflicts of interest—things relevant to democratic accountability. I don't weaponize personal tragedies, manufacture false narratives, or incite communal hatred. If you want dirty tricks, I'm not your person. If you want rigorous accountability research that stands up to fact-checking, let's talk.
What this looks like:
· Document review (public records, legislative voting, media archives)
· Field verification (multiple source confirmation)
· Legal review (ensuring compliance, avoiding defamation)
· Strategic assessment (relevance to governance capacity)
· Responsible deployment guidelines
**4. Research Collaboration**
I collaborate with academic researchers, think tanks, and policy organizations studying Indian electoral politics, democratic systems, or campaign strategy. I provide field access, data, and practitioner insights that complement academic expertise. I'm particularly interested in projects examining booth-level dynamics, caste politics, tribal governance, or predictive modeling in heterogeneous democracies.
What this looks like:
· Joint research design (combining academic rigor with field feasibility)
· Field data collection access (booth-level intelligence, voter surveys)
· Co-authorship on publications (practitioner-scholar collaboration)
· Guest lectures or workshops (sharing field experience with students)
· Methodology development (improving how we study Indian politics)
**5. Training & Capacity Building**
I train campaign teams, party workers, and political organizations in booth-level intelligence methods, field verification protocols, and systematic campaign management. This isn't generic 'political consulting 101.' This is hands-on skill transfer based on what actually works in Indian contexts.
What this looks like:
· Workshop design (2-5 day intensive training programs)
· Booth captain training (field intelligence collection methods)
· War room setup (integrating data, field reports, strategic planning)
· Ongoing mentorship (support during actual campaigns)
· Post-campaign reviews (learning from successes and failures)
To save everyone time, here's what I don't do. If you're looking for these services, I can probably recommend other consultants who specialize in them.
· **Social media management** – I analyze how WhatsApp politics works, but I don't run your Twitter account
· **Event management** – I don't organize rallies, public meetings, or campaign events
· **Creative services** – I don't design logos, make campaign videos, or produce advertisements
· **Media relations** – I don't handle press strategy or journalist relationships
· **Fundraising** – I don't do donor outreach or campaign finance management
· **Candidate training** – I don't coach politicians on public speaking or media appearances
· **National-level campaigns** – I work on constituency-level races where booth intelligence matters
My expertise is highly specific: electoral intelligence, field operations, strategic analysis, and research. If you need other services, I'm happy to connect you with trusted colleagues who specialize in those areas.
**You're competing in a tight race** where 2,000-5,000 votes determine the outcome. That's where booth-level intelligence provides decisive advantage.
· **You value ground truth over consultant theories.** You want intelligence systems grounded in actual field verification, not assumptions or stereotypes.
· **You're willing to invest in the unglamorous work.** Building booth-level intelligence takes time, resources, and discipline. It's not sexy, but it works.
· **You want to win ethically.** You care about democratic norms even while competing aggressively for power. You won't ask me to do things I'll refuse to do.
· **You're in Tripura, Assam, Jharkhand, or similar contexts** where I have deep regional knowledge. I can work elsewhere, but effectiveness correlates with local expertise.
· **You're a researcher studying Indian politics** and need field access, practitioner insights, or collaborative partnerships that combine academic and field perspectives.
· **You want quick fixes or magic bullets.** Electoral intelligence requires 6-12 weeks of systematic work. If your election is 3 weeks away, I can't help.
· **You only care about optics.** If you want impressive-looking campaigns regardless of effectiveness, hire someone else. I optimize for votes, not photos.
· **You want me to guarantee victory.** I build systems that maximize your probability of winning. I can't guarantee outcomes—too many variables are outside anyone's control.
· **You expect me to do everything.** I'm a specialist, not a full-service agency. You'll need other partners for media, events, creative work.
· **You want dirty tricks or unethical tactics.** I won't manufacture fake scandals, incite communal hatred, or suppress voter turnout. Don't ask.
· **You're not willing to pay for quality.** My work is labor-intensive and highly specialized. If your primary criterion is 'cheapest consultant,' we're not a match.
I've learned to be selective about engagements. I'd rather work on 3 campaigns where I can make genuine impact than 10 where I'm just another consultant producing reports that get ignored. If the above 'not a fit' criteria describe you, let's not waste each other's time. If the 'good fit' criteria resonate, let's talk.
**Best for:** Competitive constituency-level races where precision matters
**Timeline:** 8-12 weeks (ideal start: 3 months before polling)
**Commitment:** Full-time engagement during campaign period
What you get:
· Complete booth-level intelligence architecture (demographic mapping, organizational assessment, sentiment tracking)
· Weekly strategic intelligence reports with actionable recommendations
· Resource allocation optimization based on predictive modeling
· Field personnel training and quality control
· War room integration (intelligence feeding into strategic decision-making)
· Post-election analysis and learning documentation
**Best for:** Campaigns with existing field teams needing strategic guidance
**Timeline:** 4-8 weeks (flexible start)
**Commitment:** Part-time engagement (2-3 days/week on-site, remote support between)
What you get:
· Strategic situation assessment and campaign design
· Intelligence methodology training for your existing team
· Bi-weekly strategy sessions reviewing intelligence and adjusting plans
· Opposition research frameworks and ethical guidelines
· Resource allocation recommendations
· Access to me for rapid consultation on emerging issues
**Best for:** Academic researchers, think tanks, policy organizations
**Timeline:** Flexible (3-12 months typical)
**Commitment:** Project-specific (varies by research design)
What you get:
· Field access and data collection support
· Practitioner insights and co-analysis
· Joint publication/co-authorship opportunities
· Guest lectures or workshops with your students/team
· Methodology consultation on studying Indian politics
**Investment:** Negotiable based on project scope. I'm particularly interested in collaborations that advance knowledge about Indian electoral politics, even if compensation is modest. Academic partnerships often involve institutional funding, grants, or exchange of services (field access for analytical support).
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