Some ‘polls’ just thinly disguised campaign devices

Answering the phone can be a hazard during campaign season, when the person on the other end wants to know how old you are, how much you make and for whom you intend to vote.

But there are good polls and not good polls, and Erica Weintraub Austin of Pullman believes a pretty suspect one is making the rounds in the Palouse. It starts with the standard questions, but after determining a person’s choice for a particular statewide race, begins asking if that support would change if …

Austin said she’s heard from some people who are asked about things that might make them change their support for Sen. Patty Murray. She herself was called and eventually asked if she would change her vote for Christine Gregoire for governor if she knew the Democratic candidate was accused of hiding information, allowing access to certain records and lying.

She was suspicious of the poll for several reasons, one of them being that the question about changing support listed “a tirade” of different things. A true survey would ask about one issue at a time to avoid biasing the response, she said.

She demanded to talk to a supervisor, to know who was conducting the poll, and for whom.

“They sort of called the wrong person,” she said.

Austin teaches public relations and political communication at Washington State University, and is familiar with the ethics guidelines for the American Association for Public Opinion Research.

“Before answering a poll, you should ask who is sponsoring the poll. If the firm refuses, says they don’t know, they never tell, it biases the results or makes some such excuse, they are not following the ethical guidelines…and should be reported,” Austin said.

She was told the firm conducting the poll was Dresner, Wickers & Associates, but the supervisor wouldn’t tell her for whom. She believes it was an unethical “push poll” a tactic used to sway elections rather than measure candidate support.

But the group that is paying for the poll, the Building Industry Association of Washington, said there’s nothing wrong with it. Elliot Swaney of BIAW says it’s a valid survey to determine issues that resonate with voters. If Austin had said Republican Dino Rossi, the survey would have tested issues on his strengths and weaknesses, too.

Swaney notes a true push poll usually involves calling lots of people, asking one or two questions – generally laced with negative information – and not even bothering to tabulate results.

“I’ve conducted push polls, and this is not one,” he said. It’s one of many surveys being conducted by more than a dozen interest groups and candidates.

That being the case, Austin’s suggestions may be even more timely. Ask who is conducting the poll, and for whom. If you have any doubts about the survey, don’t answer the questions. You can also report them to the association, P. O. Box 14263 Lenexa, KS 66285-4263, or send them e-mail at AAPOR-info@goAMP.com.

Free press, free society

A new publication that urges the homeless to become more politically active hit the streets last week. The Spokangle has some good basic information on how to get registered and vote, and tries to debunk such opinions as “politics doesn’t have anything to do with my daily life” and “my voice doesn’t matter.”

While the free publication has some good advice, it does have one bit of bad information. It says that people who are homeless can write “homeless” in the space on a voter registration form set aside for an address.

Not so, says Spokane County Auditor Vicky Dalton. A voter must put an address in that space. It can be the address of a shelter, or anywhere else a homeless person can arrange to pick up mail.

“We don’t really care what the address is,” Dalton said. But if mail from the Elections Office continues to come back undelivered, the voter eventually can be bumped off the rolls.

In the mail

Speaking of the Spokane Elections Office, absentee voters will be getting a card in the mail soon (if they haven’t already) with instructions on how to vote in the new-fangled “pick a party” primary. The absentee ballots go in the mail next week.

Dalton asks that absentee voters please, please, PLEASE hold onto the instructions until after they mail-in their ballots, to help avoid confusion.

Why not mail the instructions with the ballot? Because with four different ballots, the absentee packet was already at its maximum width for easy handling by the mail machines, she said.