Commentary: I study polling failures – this time, pollsters were mostly right, if not precise

By: W. Joseph Campbell

Outlets: Rhode Island Current

Published: November 6, 2026

Words: 739

Last Updated: 3 days, 7 hours ago

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This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
The crucial test for preelection polls is whether they broadly indicate how voters are likely to decide. By that fundamental measure, the 2026 midterm polls largely succeeded in anticipating outcomes on Election Day.

If somewhat tentatively, the polls overall had been signaling important gains for Democrats. And that is what voting produced.

It was, perhaps, …

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