Political advertising is one of the many voiceover genres represented by the professional male voice talents here at MVO: The Voiceover Guys. And with the 2026 midterm election season heating up, we thought it would be interesting to talk with one of our own, veteran political voiceover talent Peter K. O’Connell, about what goes into creating a political commercial demo.
Peter recently produced a brand-new political voiceover demo and then, perhaps against better judgment, decided it needed some memorable new branding too. We asked him about creating the demo, finding the right voice for political advertising and how an old-fashioned postage stamp somehow became part of the story.
Why Create a New Political Voiceover Demo?
MVO: After more than 40 years doing political voiceover, why create a new political commercial demo now?
Peter K. O’Connell: Mostly because political advertising keeps changing. The way campaigns talk to voters today isn’t necessarily the way they talked to them five or ten years ago. My old demo had served me very well, but eventually you listen to something and think, “Yep, time for a new one.” I wanted this demo to sound like the political work consultants, campaign managers and producers are creating right now.
What Does a Political Voiceover Demo Need to Show?
MVO: What did you want people to hear in the new demo?
Peter K. O’Connell: Hopefully, me not sounding like the same guy nine times! Political voiceover can require an everyman, a voice of reason, an incredulous voter, a subtle influencer or, sometimes, a guy who needs to come in pretty hard. But whatever the style, you’re really trying to understand the voter the spot is talking to. That’s the fun part for me.
Choosing Which Political Campaigns to Voice
MVO: Are there political campaigns you choose not to voice?
Peter K. O’Connell: There is one line I’ve drawn for myself. I’m not affiliated with a political party, but I only voice political work for candidates who fully support the Pro-Life platform. It’s simply a personal decision I’ve made about the political work I take on.
Why Does Political Voiceover Branding Matter?
MVO: Then the demo was finished. Why not just leave well enough alone?
Peter K. O’Connell: Excellent question. Apparently I’m incapable of that. Political demographics tend to feature the Capitol, American flags and lots of red, white and blue. Nothing wrong with that, but I wanted something people might actually remember. Somehow that thought ended with me on an old-fashioned U.S. postage stamp looking vaguely presidential. These things happen.
MVO: Does the branding really matter?
Peter K. O’Connell: The voiceover demo always comes first. Period. But political consultants and producers hear a lot of voices. If the artwork makes somebody stop, listen and maybe remember me when they need a male political voiceover talent, it worked. And if they get a little laugh out of it too, even better. It’s what producers have come to expect when my brand is “Your Friendly, Neighborhood Voiceover Talent”.
About Peter K. O’Connell
Peter K. O’Connell is an award-winning male voice actor with more than 40 years of political commercial voiceover experience. He provides political voiceover for radio, television, digital and campaign advertising from his professional Source-Connect equipped studio.