Election 2008 tests the pollsters’ accuracy – and they differ

The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal Editorial, 10/28/8

You can’t open the newspaper, turn on the television, get on the Internet or talk to a friend without hearing about polls during this political season.

One recent poll shows Republican presidential nominee John McCain and senatorial nominee Roger Wicker way out front in Mississippi.

Other recent polls, especially in the Senate contest, indicate the election is much closer here in the Magnolia State.

Of course, it’s true that the only poll that counts is on election day. But polls are fun to study. The trick for any pollster worth his or her salt is to conduct a poll that accurately depicts the demographic profile that will actually vote.