The election is now only twelve days away and the outcome seems as uncertain as ever. But one thing is for sure: the economy is still the central issue for voters. Frank Newport, editor-in-chief of Gallup, says data show voters continue to rank the economy as the most important problem facing the country, followed by jobs, the deficit, and health care.
Meanwhile, Gallup’s national daily tracking poll has gained some attention this past week. Some critics say the poll, which shows a solid lead for Governor Mitt Romney, is out-of-step with other national polls that indicate the race is much closer. In a recent article titled “Gallup vs. the World“, Nate Silver of the New York Times’ FiveThirtyEight blog questions the predictive value of the Gallup poll.
“Its not unusual that polls would differ,” says Newport, “I don’t think our polls actually differ that much in certain instances than many people might argue.” Newport says Gallup is focused on its own methodology and not the election season poll buzz:”Our job at Gallup is to try to do the best job we can to figure out who people are going to vote for.”
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