Poll Hub

Tomorrow marks one year since President Donald Trump took the oath of office. So, how’s the president doing?

Despite a year marked by a job approval rating hovering in the thirties and a majority of Americans rating Trump’s presidency as a “failure,” there are some bright spots for the president. What are they, and what impact could President Trump’s job approval rating have on the 2018 midterm elections? The Poll Hub team digs into the results of the latest NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist Poll.

And, what is “sugging” and “frugging”? What people need to know about these techniques used to raise money under the guise of survey research.

Oprah Winfrey’s speech at the Golden Globes sparked renewed enthusiasm about a potential presidential candidacy by the journalist, talk show host, and actress. This week, Poll Hub takes an in-depth look at what the polls show about a possible Oprah run against President Donald Trump in 2020. They also dig into how the concept of an “outsider” candidate has evolved in politics.

And, it has been fifty years since the Supreme Court legalized interracial marriage in the case, Loving vs. Virginia. According to the Pew Research Center, three percent of all married couples in 1967 were interracial. In 2017, 17% of all newlywed couples were interracial. Using this data as a springboard, the Poll Hub team looks at how Americans’ attitudes toward marriage have changed over the past five decades and how the groundbreaking Loving case paved the way for greater acceptance of other societal changes.

In this episode of Poll Hub, the brain trust of The Marist Poll shares its poll watcher’s checklist for the 2018 midterm elections for United States Congress. What can pollsters and media pundits do to prevent the public from being pointed in the wrong direction? Stay tuned.

And, according to the Pew Research Center, more and more people are getting their news from social media. The Poll Hub team picks up the topics of what role President Donald Trump plays in this trend, how social media impacts people’s understanding of the polls, and whether social media is the next step in the technology of public opinion research.

Using a compilation of polls from 2017, a recent Washington Post article asserts that, historically, Americans’ outlook about the direction of the country is impacted by whether or not the economy is doing well. And if it is, that credit tends to go to the President of the United States. But, if 2017 is the barometer, that correlation no longer holds true.

In this episode of Poll Hub, the crew picks up on the thesis of the article, analyzes the polls discussed, and weighs in on why Americans have a pessimistic view about the direction of the country given that the economy is thriving.

With the passage of the tax reform bill, the Republicans in Congress hope to start off the New Year with a sense that the GOP-controlled Congress can have legislative success. But, with so many questions about tax reform left unanswered, is this really a win for Republicans?

As the Poll Hub team discusses, the danger for the Republicans is how tax reform unfolds in 2018 and whether the GOP can maintain its credibility given the expected impact of the legislation on the deficit. Will the Democrats or Republicans win the “messaging war” as they head into the 2018 midterm elections? And, how could the passage of the tax reform bill impact perceptions of President Donald Trump? Find out in this episode of Poll Hub.