A Word on Exit Polls

Mark Blumenthal:

Yes, the television networks will be conducting exit polls today. But if you are looking for the leaked exit poll estimates that typically appear online on Election Day, you are probably out of luck at least until later tonight. More on that below. But as long as you are here, let me tell you a little bit about how exit polls are conducted, how they will be different this year, and why it is probably best to try to ignore the exit poll estimates that will inevitably leak later tonight.

I have always been a fan of exit polls. Despite their shortcomings and the inevitable controversies, the final network exit polls remain our best source of data on who voted and why. Having said that, exit polls are still just random sample surveys, possessing the usual limitations plus some that are unique to exit polling.