“It’s not opinion polls that determine the outcome of elections, it’s votes in ballot boxes.” -Nicola Sturgeon

Since the development of modern political polling in the 1930’s by George Gallup, polls have been used to forecast the results of various elections. But do they accurately depict our nation’s voting tendencies? Polling has a history of being inaccurate at times, and this inaccuracy was showcased in the Presidential Election of 2016 when Hillary Clinton was predicted to win the Presidency in a landslide. It’s now November of 2018, and Donald J. Trump has been President of the United States for one year and 280-plus days.

First, the media is extremely biased. President Trump has called great attention to the “fake news” and left-wing media bias created by news stations such as CNN, CBS, NBC, and more.

A 2017-2018 study revealed that 92% of news coverage about Trump was negative. This figure should astonish you, considering that since Trump’s inauguration minority unemployment rates are at an all-time low and America’s economy is steadily growing.

More and more jobs are returning to America, and more and more money is finding itself in the pockets of the American people. So why is there such a negative view of Trump? To begin with, the media commonly gives more air time to issues that prove to be scandalous, controversial, or both. The media as a whole has spent much more time discussing Russia, North Korea, immigration, and Trump’s Wall than they have the growing economy in America. This perception that Trump has only brought controversy and problems is false and is rooted in the media’s avoidance of the discussion of Trump’s great feats in office.

So, how does this relate to polling? Most news stations will only display polls that favorably present their own views. They paint a distorted view of America’s political landscape, and skewed results create polling inaccuracies.

Second, left extremism is a real factor in American politics. The avid commitment of certain left extremist groups to make their presence known trickles into the polling system due to the desire of these groups to show their support for any given candidate. As seen in recent issues such as Judge Kavanaugh’s appointment to the Supreme Court, leftist groups join in protest and result in what is ultimately mob rule. This threat is terrifying to many right-winged and moderate citizens, therefore keeping them from making their political opinions known on a large scale.

This is why it appears that more mobs and protests are carried out by liberal groups than conservatives.

Finally, the need for political correctness in today’s society leads many people with conservative views to keep to themselves for fear of being ostracized by the liberal factions of society. More people voted for Trump than anyone expected, and this is why.

Being a conservative in today’s world puts one’s beliefs under extreme duress due to the idea that Republican ideas are fueled with bigotry and sexism (which couldn’t be further from the truth). The ostracization of many conservative ideas and outlooks causes the right-wing to be misrepresented in many polling processes.

In conclusion, polling practices have proven, at least recently, to be largely inaccurate. Democrats do have a chance to win certain midterm elections, including the Georgia governor’s race, but they will by no means win with as large of a margin as has been predicted by many pre-election polls.

The views expressed in this article are solely of the author and in no way reflect a political stance held by the Chipper.