Question about polling

[DesertRat]

I had dinner with a 30 year old relative and I brought up the subject of presidential candidates and poll numbers. Her comment was, well you know they only poll people who answer their phones. She said that no one she knows has a landline and no one answers calls from unknown callers.

It made think about how the polls are conducted. Do they call landlines and cell phones? We gave up our home phone a couple of years ago.

So how do they get a cross section of the population?

[pnwmom]

1. Good pollsters call both landlines and cell phones. n/t

[Wellstone ruled]

2. Yes the good Polling firms use

both Cell and Land phones. It is the data base that is used for contacts that is questionable.

Never forget,someone is paying for these polls.

[sandensea]

3. I understand the key to all good polling is sampling

Good pollsters, when they see that a certain demographic is being statistically underrepresented because, say, most of those in that group have no land lines, they have to make a greater effort to reach more of those from said group.

Until something approaching an accurate proportion is reached.

Or, of course, you can do what rASSmussen does and mostly poll older white voters with Killary bumper stickers pasted over their Nobama bumper stickers.

That tends to skew the results a little.

[ancianita]

4. Gallup is still the biggest nationally, and I still think their sampling is too small. Just me.

Poll sampling is its own subject of study. And in a country this big, valid and reliable sampling is hard won and worth a lot.

Polling at this point can't be a predictor. It can only be a kind of pulse.

Maybe this will help.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opinion_poll

[DesertRat]

5. Thanks.