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Matthew Owen Gagnon (born December 10, 1980) is an American think tank executive, political strategist, and writer from Maine. He is the director and chief executive officer of the Maine Policy Institute, a free-market think tank based in Portland, Maine.
Gagnon was previously the director of digital strategy for the Republican Governors Association. He is a columnist for the Bangor Daily News and host of the morning show on Portland's largest talk-radio station, WGAN.
After graduating from Hampden Academy, he went on to pursue a degree in political science at the University of Maine. While there, he became active in campus politics, joining the student government and becoming Chairman of the University of Maine College Republicans. He later served as the President of the University of Maine General Student Senate, as well as the President of Student Government. In 2003, the school recognized him with the Student Affairs Citation for Meritorious Service to the university. In his final year, he would make an unsuccessful run to represent Old Town in the Maine House of Representatives.
The Republican Governors Association named Gagnon its Director of Digital Strategy in January 2012. At the RGA, he was responsible for the committee's strategic digital initiatives in support of sitting Republican governors, as well as those campaigning for office. During the 2012 Wisconsin gubernatorial recall election, Gagnon was recognized for his use of digital strategies on Walker's behalf, and for what he called the practice of using "smart data", or political data being leveraged in detailed, specific ways to persuade and turn out voters. During his tenure at the RGA, Gagnon was recognized by Business Insider as one of the top 50 digital strategists in the country, and by Campaigns and Elections as one of the top ten communicators in politics.
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