Keeping with tradition, Republicans are behind the times, and, according to a study by the Pew Research Center, that is leading to their polling higher in upcoming elections.
The study found that because Republicans are more likely to have land-based phone service rather than solely cellphones, polling companies are better able to reach Republicans. Some, such as the Rasmussin poll, only contact participants by landline phone and miss people who use only cellphones.
Young people, black, Latino and poor people are more likely to use only cell phones – and are more likely to vote Democratic.
As a result, poll results are slanted toward conservatives. The Pew study found that polls that called only landlines gave Republicans a 12-point lead in upcoming elections. Polls that called cellphone users gave Republicans a seven-point edge.
Laws forbid automated dialing for cellphones, and many of the big polling groups depend on computers to call poll participants.
We have interviewed quite a few young people about the upcoming election, and we’ve found a lot of apathy toward and misunderstanding of the political process Sadly, many high school government classes don’t give students a sense of real-world political participation, focusing instead on vocabulary and the rigamarole of passing a bill if the president vetoes it. That’s not very useful information if, say, you’re trying to make Canton a better place for young people.
As the polling problems demonstrate, many of us are left out. We need better access to our candidates and elected officials, and we need to know how to push them to make the changes that need to be made.
We also see some hesitation or fear of becoming politically active among young people. Politics is something we shouldn’t talk about. We’re told it’s impolite. So we balk at talking about issues that impact our lives.
For those of us who may feel alienated by politics, bad polls are another reason to ignore elections. It’s kind of like watching the Browns game when they’re down by two touchdowns in the fourth quarter. Maybe they’ll find a way to pull it off, but what’s on Comedy Central?
Polls are not helping us. Why vote if your guy is down in the polls? He’s not going to win anyway, right? If he’s not going to win, why follow the race, why educate yourself on the issues? Why participate in politics at all?
Ideally, we wouldn’t understand politics by who wins and loses. Instead, making good decisions about social spending should benefit us all. Learning about the issues and not what flawed polls say will happen on Election Day is the way to make democracy meaningful.
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