Ned Carlson is an aide to Congressman Matthew Santos. He has worked for the congressman for a long time, and Santos's wife Helen is fond of him.
He attended the University of Texas where he majored in History.[1]
He works with the Santos campaign during the primaries. He does research into education, particularly lengthening the school year, for the congressman.[2] During the Convention, on Josh Lyman's orders, he offers New Jersey delegates federal jobs to support Santos's candidacy.[3]
Once Santos becomes the Democratic candidate for president, Ned is out of his depth. He messes up with the press when the Santos campaign is trying to dodge the White House leak story and suggests Santos regularly skips lunch meetings,[4] and he recommends they suspend the campaign out of respect for Chairman Farad's death.[5] He doesn't understand the significance of the stagnated polling or the campaign's need to stay off the topic of abortion.[6]
Louise Thornton puts him on a list of staff who need to be cut from the campaign. Santos agrees and tells Josh to transfer him back to the congressional office. Ned believes Josh is using him as a scapegoat for the floundering campaign, unaware that Josh didn't want to fire anybody and that the order came from Santos. Santos intends to find him a position in the White House once he wins.[6]