Observer reports on Edison/Mitofsky polling procedures in South Carolina

[kpete]

Observer reports on Edison/Mitofsky polling procedures in South Carolina
by Steven Freeman 1/27/2008 6:43:00 AM




This terrific report comes from long time election activist Marj Creech, who was observing the Democratic Party primary election in South Carolina yesterday. She spent 90 minutes at a precinct being exit polled by Edison/Mitofsky. Also note the “curbside voting” provisions made for one voter. Marj is en route to Florida for continued election observation. Join us in wishing her the keenest eye and the best of luck.





I just witnessed how this exit poll, carried out by Edison/Mitofsky, was done in SC. I was in only one precinct in Greenville, SC, and was surprised to find one exit pollster, sitting at a small table (they gave her a child's desk, she said) She simply asked each voter, as they left the voting area if they would like to be part of the "media exit poll." Behind her was a sign saying CNN and other TV stations. She was a very personable black woman, and not pushy at all; she was a little tired and had been there all day from 7 am and would be there till 7 pm, with an hour for lunch. I didn't ask her how much she was paid, but she seemed happy enough to be doing the job. She admitted to me that she did not believe the surveys she was taking would be the same as the results of the election taking place there, so I said, "Well no, but how about if they combine ALL the exit polling places results; don't you think the official results might match then?" She said no because she went to lunch and missed a lot of voters. I don't think she understood what I was saying. She did not know how many polls were being taken across the state.



Approximately one in three voters took a survey form, and sat there and filled it out, by pencil placing a check in the choices. The form was two-sided and had maybe 20 questions. At first she was going to give me a form, but after I left and came back, she decided she had to keep track of all the forms. They were on a pad of maybe 100? forms and she had three pads. There were too many questions, she told me, and people didn't want to take the time to fill them out. By the way she asked she was biased toward letting people go without filling them out – the size of the seating space and the fact that she was just one person influenced her I think.



The questions on the form (people would occasionally read them to me) were subjective and not just who they voted for, but about their church going/religion and the "Bill factor," simply if Bill's presence in the campaign influenced Hillary's vote. It also asked race, age, and gender. I don't know what else was asked since I never got to read the form. One woman sitting next to me said there were many questions she could not choose any of the choices alone about what influenced her to vote as she did.



She had to CALL in THE RESULTS as soon as the polls closed, probably on her cell phone.

more at:
http://www.electionintegrity.org/blogengine/post/2008/01/Observer-reports-on-EdisonMitofsky-polling-procedures-in-South-Carolina.aspx

[Wilms]

1. Wow! Curbside voting!

Call the cops!11!!

So Steve, have you really never heard of curb-side voting? I mean, I'd assume an reformer worth their salt would know. Or is the faux outrage right oughtta of the playbook?

Reading thru that meandering post left me with one question in particular: What's your point?.

P.S. How's the book selling?

[fasttense]

2. Edison/Mitofsky? Weren't they the pollsters who rigged

the exit polls in 2004 to hide the fact that the bushes rigged the election? I wouldn't trust their results any further than I can throw them against a 50 mile an hour wind.

[Land Shark]

3. yes, they were the 2004 exit pollsters who refuse to disclose certain key parts of their data...

[yowzayowzayowza]

4. Aren't they just refusing in order to protect the polleez?

With voter data in hand the exit poll responses could be used to identify individuals thus violating the confidentiality promised the pollee.