Identity Resolution for Politics: Onboarding NGP VAN Data to CTV & Facebook
Identity resolution for politics: onboarding NGP VAN data to CTV & Facebook is the modern battlefield where elections are won or lost before a single ballot is cast. In the 2024 cycle, we saw political ad spending on Connected TV (CTV) skyrocket to $1.5 billion, proving that the days of relying solely on linear broadcast are over. For Democratic campaigns, the challenge is no longer just identifying the right voters in NGP VAN; it is about finding those specific individuals across a fragmented digital ecosystem. Whether you are running a State Senate race or a massive Independent Expenditure, the ability to bridge the gap between offline voter files and online digital identities is what separates a targeted winning strategy from a wasteful spray-and-pray approach.
From the Voter File to the Living Room: Mastering Political Data Onboarding
The Democratic ecosystem is built on the gold standard of data: NGP VAN. However, a voter file sitting in a CRM is static. To compete with the Republican noise machine, you must activate that data. The core problem we face is the ‘Data Silo.’ You know that a 35-year-old suburban woman in a swing district cares about reproductive freedom, but if you cannot deterministically identify her heavily encrypted ID on a streaming service like Hulu or a social feed on Instagram, that knowledge is tactically useless. Identity resolution bridges this gap. It turns a name and address into a digital identifier, allowing you to serve unskippable CTV ads to the exact households that will decide the election. This process is not just about reach; it is about efficiency. Every dollar spent showing a persuasion ad to a MAGA loyalist is a dollar stolen from our Get Out The Vote (GOTV) efforts.
The Mechanics of the Match: How Identity Resolution Works
At its core, identity resolution creates a ‘linkage’ between offline Personally Identifiable Information (PII) and online anonymous identifiers. When you export a list from NGP VAN, you typically have names, physical addresses, and perhaps phone numbers. Platforms like Deep Sync or LiveRamp ingest this data and match it against massive ‘Identity Graphs’—databases that link devices, emails, and physical locations. For political campaigns, we prioritize ‘Deterministic Matching’ over probabilistic guessing. This means we only target a user if we are 100% sure the digital ID belongs to the voter on your list. Deep Sync, for example, utilizes enhanced onboarding to match voter audiences to The Trade Desk via Unified ID 2.0 (UID2), achieving match rates significantly higher than the industry average of 30-50%. This precision ensures that when we talk about protecting democracy or expanding healthcare, the message lands on the right screen.
Tactical Execution: Onboarding NGP VAN to Programmatic Channels
Executing this strategy requires a disciplined workflow. First, your data team must segment the universe within NGP VAN based on propensity scores—do not just export the whole file. Once you have your ‘Persuasion’ or ‘Mobilization’ universe, the file must be cleaned and standardized. Next is the onboarding phase. Utilizing partners like Deep Sync allows for rapid activation, often onboarding lists within hours rather than days. This speed is critical during the final weeks of a campaign when the news cycle shifts hourly. Once onboarded, these segments become available in Demand Side Platforms (DSPs) like The Trade Desk for CTV activation, or directly within Meta Business Manager for Facebook and Instagram. This allows for an omnichannel approach: a voter sees your TV spot on Roku in the morning and a follow-up donation plea on Facebook in the afternoon.
Three Costly Mistakes That Drain Democratic Budgets
In our experience, campaigns often fumble the technical execution of identity resolution. The first mistake is obsessing over match rate at the expense of accuracy. A provider might promise an 80% match rate using ‘fuzzy’ logic, but if half of those matches are the voter’s Republican spouse or children, you are wasting money. Stick to strict individual-level matching. The second mistake is neglecting data hygiene. If your NGP VAN data is filled with old addresses, your digital match will fail. Always run NCOA (National Change of Address) updates before onboarding. The third mistake is failing to close the loop. You must ensure that your digital engagement metrics are fed back into your analytics to refine future targeting. We cannot afford to fly blind against well-funded conservative Super PACs.
Pre-Launch Data Hygiene Checklist
Before you push ‘live’ on a campaign involving identity resolution for politics: onboarding NGP VAN data to CTV & Facebook, run through this checklist. Ensure your voter universe export includes all available PII fields (Email, Phone, Address) to maximize match potential. Verify that your DSP or onboarding partner (like Deep Sync or MediaJel) is compliant with political ad disclosure regulations in your specific jurisdiction. Confirm that your creative assets are formatted for both high-definition CTV environments and mobile-first social feeds. Finally, set up conversion tracking pixels that align with your campaign goals, whether that is email acquisition or pure awareness lift.
The Sutton & Smart Difference: Powering the Blue Wave
Hope is not a strategy, and data without logistics is just a spreadsheet. To defeat entrenched Republican incumbents and hold the line against extremism, you need more than just good advice; you need full-stack execution. At Sutton & Smart, we specialize in high-level Democratic Media Buying and Data Strategy. We do not just advise you on identity resolution; our team manages the entire pipeline, from NGP VAN extraction to the launch of Rapid Response Digital Ads and Anti-Disinformation Units designed to counter GOP attacks in real-time. We ensure your campaign leverages the same sophisticated infrastructure as the largest Presidential runs, optimizing every cent of your budget. Stop guessing where your voters are. Let us build the data infrastructure that wins races.
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Stop guessing. Contact Sutton & Smart today to deploy our Democratic logistics infrastructure.
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Jon Sutton
An expert in management, strategy, and field organizing, Jon has been a frequent commentator in national publications.
AutoAuthor | Partner
Have Questions?
Frequently Asked Questions
Industry averages for offline-to-online matching hover between 30% and 50%. However, specialized political onboarders like Deep Sync can achieve match rates over 56% by utilizing direct integrations with platforms like The Trade Desk. Higher match rates are desirable, but never sacrifice accuracy for volume.
Yes, provided you use reputable identity resolution partners that utilize hashing and anonymization protocols (like UID2). The process strips PII before it reaches the ad platform, ensuring compliance with GDPR, CCPA, and political advertising transparency laws.
Yes, Meta allows for 'Custom Audience' uploads using customer lists. However, using a third-party identity graph to enrich your data before uploading can often result in higher match rates than a direct upload, as the graph may contain alternate email addresses associated with that voter's Facebook account.
This article is provided for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, financial, or tax advice. Political campaign laws, FEC regulations, voter-file handling rules, and platform policies (Meta, Google, etc.) are subject to frequent change. State-level laws governing the use, storage, and transmission of voter files or personally identifiable political data vary significantly and may impose strict limitations on third-party uploads, data matching, or cross-platform activation. Always consult your campaign’s General Counsel, Compliance Treasurer, or state party data governance office before making strategic, legal, or financial decisions related to voter data. Parts of this article may have been created, drafted, or refined using artificial intelligence tools. AI systems can produce errors or outdated information, so all content should be independently verified before use in any official campaign capacity. Sutton & Smart is an independent political consulting firm. Unless explicitly stated, we are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by any third-party platforms mentioned in this content, including but not limited to NGP VAN, ActBlue, Meta (Facebook/Instagram), Google, Hyros, or Vibe.co. All trademarks and brand names belong to their respective owners and are used solely for descriptive and educational purposes.
https://www.experian.com/blogs/marketing-forward/connected-tv-political-advertising-in-2024/page/3/
https://www.emarketer.com/content/costs-of-id-resolution-rising
https://www.meiro.io/product/identity-resolution/
