ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵ Poll
An designed by DuBose Kapeluck, head of the Department of Political Science, and Assistant Professor of Political Science Mark Owens, has been lauded as one of the best polls of South Carolina voters.Â
The poll sought to measure support for likely presidential candidates in the state and to assess seven leadership traits among leading candidates. Nearly 1,000 surveys were conducted—405 by phone and 587 electronically. The results matched CBS News (online only) and were more accurate than Winthrop University (phone and online). Amy Walter of The Cook Political Report noted that the poll did not overestimate support for either of the two leading presidential candidates. The difference in the outcome resulted from late shifts in enthusiasm for both candidates.
ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵ’s gold standard method of probability sampling earned immediate acceptance from public outlets, including Real Clear Politics, which does not post all polls. ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵ Poll was used by ABC, Fox News, NPR, FiveThirtyEight, and local and state outlets. Polling data was shared with the Roper Center at Cornell University to increase transparency and credibility.
Kapeluck and Owens published a commentary piece in the Post & Courier about the need to study population shifts in South Carolina. They will present the results at a conference and in a forthcoming book.
Additionally, Kapeluck and Owens received a $25,000 grant from the Lowcountry Graduate Center for embedding projects related to data analysis and survey research in the Master of Arts in Social Science program.