pollster
Public sentiment tracker
A pollster is a person or organization that conducts polls—surveys designed to measure public opinion on political candidates, social issues, or consumer preferences.
Pollsters design questionnaires, gather responses, and analyze results: Pollsters predicted a close race.
The term often appears in election coverage, where pollsters attempt to forecast outcomes.
Extracting subset for study
- questionnaireFormal inquiry form
- focus-groupsConsumer feedback assemblies
- interviewsFormal evaluative conversations
- respondentsThose who answer queries
fieldwork · canvassing · quota · telephone · door-to-door · weighting · robocall · cross-tabs
Leading survey firm
Organized effort toward goal
- votersThose who cast ballots
- candidatesThose seeking selection
- primariesIntraparty nomination contests
- caucusesClosed political party meetings
electorate · battleground · midterms · favorability · head-to-head · incumbent · challenger · undecided
Statistical population characteristics
- trendsPrevailing directions of change
- dataFacts for analysis
- crosstabsCategorical data summaries
- sentimentFelt attitude or view
attitudes · aggregation · forecasting · horse-race · toss-up · leaning · outlier · herding
Professional opinion-giver
- analystOne who examines systematically
- commentatorBroadcast analyst or narrator
- broadcastTransmitted media signal
- predictionForecast of coming events
projection · call · coverage · spin · narrative · horserace · desk · forecast
sampling
Extracting subset for study
- questionnaireFormal inquiry form
- focus-groupsConsumer feedback assemblies
- interviewsFormal evaluative conversations
respondents · fieldwork · canvassing · quota · telephone · door-to-door · weighting · robocall · cross-tabs · screening
Gallup
Leading survey firm
campaign
Organized effort toward goal
- votersThose who cast ballots
- candidatesThose seeking selection
- primariesIntraparty nomination contests
caucuses · electorate · battleground · midterms · favorability · head-to-head · incumbent · challenger · undecided · ballot
demographics
Statistical population characteristics
sentiment · attitudes · aggregation · forecasting · horse-race · toss-up · leaning · outlier · herding · trendline
pundit
Professional opinion-giver
- analystOne who examines systematically
- commentatorBroadcast analyst or narrator
- broadcastTransmitted media signal
prediction · projection · call · coverage · spin · narrative · horserace · desk · forecast · network
- campaigningcandidate, campaign signs, canvassing, campaign manager, fundraising
- Questionersinterrogator, interviewer, examiner, survey taker, journalist
- political advisorsadvisor, policy analyst, policy wonk, policy director, chief of staff
- political operativescampaign manager, strategist, political consultant, campaign aide, political advisor
- pollingsample, sample size, random sample, margin of error, confidence interval
- fieldworkersinterviewer, surveyor, land surveyor, researcher, anthropologist
pollsterrespondent
One who gives answers
interviewee · answerer · replier · informant · responder
pollsterpundit
Professional opinion-giver
commentator · opinion columnist · talking head · editorialist · prognosticator